In tune with the needs of its clients

The italian credit market is following a rapidly ascending curve, up 9.5% in 2007 compared to the previous year. Growth in this sector is driven mainly by personal loans. Much remains to be done however, since the Italian market is still far from realising its full potential. In 2006, Italian borrowers were in possession, on average, of credit worth 1,472 euros compared to the European average of 2,272 euros.
The financial company Agos is part of the international Crédit Agricole Group through its subsidiary Sofinco, France’s leading financial company, which controls the capital. Agos noticed that the Italian consumer’s financial needs had not all been covered and so set itself the task of analysing the expectations of Italian households. The company has two circuits by which to reach the public: its network of around 140 branches spread over the whole country and service offers made through partnerships. For example, Agos and the Italian arm of the French supermarket chain Carrefour have created Carrefour Financial Services.
But more usually, Agos offers two types of credit product, as managing director Mirco Perelli  explains. “We make credit cards and personal loans available to our clients. These services are the fruit of an open approach to  their  expectations which allows us to match our offer to their needs and adapt our solutions to different markets. Our aim is to help our clients achieve their objectives. We offer, for example, different types of credit cards: business and Gold cards as well as other cards intended to meet the needs of women or younger clients which allow them to take advantage of special offers. The same goes for personal loans. Agos offers two products that allow our clients to finance their project with a great deal of freedom and independence. They can, for example, manage repayments according to their needs. We have also created Duttilio, the first flexible and extendable loan on the Italian market, and Conto PIM, an extremely flexible credit margin.”
The consumer’s needs in terms of advice are also important which is why Agos is counting on initiatives such as Vediamoci Chiaro (seeing clearly) to increase the confidence its clients place in it. “Agos wants to communicate a clear, practical message that gets straight to the point, with the aim of being as transparent as possible. Vediamoci Chiaro is a vitally important project that aims to educate our partners and clients so they understand our credit products better,” says Mirco Perelli.
“We are now turning towards a new type of client - new arrivals in Italy and flexible workers. We have created a new company, Crédit LiFT, intended to create products designed to meet the specific needs of this market. Agos is therefore pursuing its vocation of remaining in tune with the expectations of borrowers by taking their situation into account,” adds Mirco Perelli.