Madrid:
Strategie alliance
with Banco
Popular
working well
New computer Luxembourg
1991: The year of
strategie alliances
mmmmmujs a statement from the coor_
fiHUU
Issue 10/January, 1992 band
BANCO
POPULAR
ESPANOL
The staff of the Madrid office consists
of representative Maus Barendrecht, his
assistant Erik Vermeulen (m) and a secre-
tary, Frederique Wyt. On the left in the
photo Javier Gevaell, the contact at Ban
co Popular, the first bank with which the
Rabobank Group has concluded a strategie
alliance.
In recent years Banco Popular and Rabo
bank have developed three fields in which
they cooperate. First the reciprocal help for
traditional customers - help with invest-
ments, business financing, house purchase
and mortgages, transfer accounts, and so
on. The contacts are often initiated at the
local Rabobank and are channelled via the
Eurodesk and representative office to the
liaison officer of Banco Popular Gevaell
and vice versa. As soon as the contacts
have been established one or more
intermediate links can withdraw from the
chain. In addition, the alliance also works
for the corporate market.
At Rabobank's request, large international
- mainly Dutch - businesses are financed
by Banco Popular on the basis of shared
risk and shared profits. A third devel-
opment set in motion by the representative
office and Banco Popular in 1991 is ser
vice to the private investor. Twice this year,
Rabobank Luxembourg has given presen-
tations in Southern Spain to Dutch people
residing in that country or spending the
winter there. Steps are now also being
taken to make Banco Popular's normal
banking services more accessible for
Dutch people wintering in Spain.
Rabobank cannot be present with its
own offices in every iocation where its cus
tomers are active, which is why strategie
alliances are made with other banks.
Two years ago, Rabo
bank entered into a
cooperation agree-
ment with the Span-
ish Banco Popular.
The concept caught
on fairly quickly in
othe countries where
Dutch nationals are
active, either as pri
vate individuals or in
the business field.
There are now agree-
ments with Lloyds
Bank in Great Britain and Crédit Agricole in
France. The concept mainly applies to
countries in the European Community,
where 80% of Dutch trade takes place. The
practical advantage is that a great deai of
bureaucracy is avoided as a result of such
alliances. it has been agreed that coördina
tors at the head offices will inform the part
ner banks about customers and give them
information on collateral constructions
which will be mutually accepted. An exam-
ple: In the past, a Dutch businessman who
wanted credit faciiities for his activities in
Spain had to supply the Spanish bank con-
cerned with a copy of his company's Ar-
ticles of Association and an extract from a
Dutch Chamber of Commerce translated
into Spanish by a sworn translator. These
documents had to be accom-
panied by a notarial certifi-
Miïiïcate. Now all that is needed
qjnator at the head office
that the company has been
accepted as a customer by
Rabobank.
Rabobank Luxembourg
mainly focuses on supplying
services to European private
customers, the most impor
tant products being deposits
and portfolio management.
The use of a high level com
puter programme is essential,
particularly for the latter ac-
tivity. Not only for the admini-
strative side, but also for
valuing the portfolio and ad-
vising on it. Rabobank Luxem
bourg tested and installed an
appropriate programme in the
course of 1991 so that today it has one of
the most advanced systems currently
avaiiable in this field. Together with the
trust company formed in 1991 and housed
in the same office, Rabobank Luxembourg
can now further improve its services to
companies. Up to now, it has been able to
help with setting up holding companies, but
with the trust office it can offer better
legal/fiscal and administrative support.
Rabobank Luxembourg started operations
in November 1988 and now has 23
employees. They visited the head office in
Utrecht in May 1991.
