BNP Paribas has signed a five-year partnership with Google Cloud to accelerate the deployment of agentic AI across its business, expanding access to Google's cloud infrastructure and Gemini AI models.

The partnership will see the French bank use Google Cloud's AI-optimised infrastructure, Gemini Enterprise and Gemini models to support a wider rollout of AI across the organisation, with an initial focus on Corporate & Institutional Banking (CIB).

BNP Paribas said the move will strengthen its existing multi-cloud and multi-model approach, allowing it to select different AI models and cloud environments depending on business, security and regulatory requirements.

As part of the collaboration, BNP Paribas said it plans to introduce AI agents to support a range of banking workflows. Initial use cases include automating elements of corporate credit memo preparation, alongside future deployments across sales, trading, research and structuring functions within its investment banking division.

The bank also intends to integrate Gemini models into LLM@CIB, its internal generative AI assistant, which is already used by more than 65,000 employees.

BNP Paribas stressed that any use of Google Cloud would remain subject to its existing security and data governance framework. The bank said certain categories of sensitive data would not be stored in public cloud environments, while AI agents would only receive authenticated access to the specific systems required to complete assigned tasks.

It added that interactions between AI agents and internal information systems will be monitored and controlled. It will also provide employee training on a range of topics including AI literacy and specialist agent development.

Charles Holive, chief AI officer at BNP Paribas CIB, said: “Our approach to AI starts with the business need. We assess which technology is best suited to each use case and deploy it within the bank's security and governance framework. Agentic AI can help our teams handle more complex workflows while maintaining the appropriate level of control.”

The partnership builds on existing work between the two organisations. Google Cloud technologies have already been deployed at Nickel, BNP Paribas' payment account business, where Gemini powers Nickel Assist, an AI tool that helps around 200 customer advisers respond to customer enquiries using the company's operational procedures and guidance.

Thomas Kurian, chief executive of Google Cloud, said: “Agentic AI marks a critical shift in how global financial institutions streamline operations, assess risk, and serve their clients. Through this five-year partnership, BNP Paribas is combining its banking leadership with Google Cloud's secure infrastructure and Gemini Enterprise to deploy intelligent agents within platforms across the bank.”

---