Arval Beyond
Alain van Groenendael – Chairman & CEO
Prior to becoming Chairman and CEO of Arval in January 2019, Alain van Groenendael held various positions at BNP Paribas Personal Finance. From 2008, he was Board member and Deputy Chief Executive Officer before becoming Chairman in 2015. In the same year, he joined the Management Committees of International Financial Services and Retail Banking at BNP Paribas Group. By forging strategic partnerships and driving digital transformation, he played a key role in the international development of the group.
Bart Beckers - Deputy CEO - Chief Commercial Officer
Bart Beckers has been the Chief Commercial Officer of Arval since 2013 and Deputy CEO in since 2022. He oversees all sales, marketing and partnership activities across Arval and is the sponsor of the Element-Arval Global Alliance. He is also in charge of all insurance and remarketing activities across Arval. He holds a Master degree in languages from Marie Haps in Brussels, as well as a Master in International Business from the VLEKHO (now KU Leuven). Bart started his career in the UK working for the Belgian airline, then entered the automotive sector when taking up the role of sales & marketing director at Hertz RAC Belux in 1993. Subsequently, he spent a number of years at LeasePlan in various country management roles, to join Arval in 2011 as the managing director for the UK, after which he returned to Paris to become Chief Commercial Officer for the group.
François-Xavier Castille – Deputy CEO - Arval Europe & Latam Managing Director
François-Xavier Castille joined Arval in 2000, becoming General Manager for the company in Portugal, Spain and then France. In 2018, he was appointed Managing Director, International. In May 2022, he became Deputy CEO, Arval Europe and Latin America Managing Director. On top of his current responsibilities, François-Xavier Castille is Arval Deputy CEO 2022. He also supervises the Group Procurement.
Stefano Berlenghi - Chief Operating Officer
After joining Arval in 1999, Stefano Berlenghi worked in sales and marketing in Italy and Spain, before becoming General Manager of Arval India. He returned to Italy in 2014, working his way up to General Manager Arval Italy, Networks & Business Development. He took the role of Global Operations Director in 2019, and became Chief Operating Officer in May 2022.
Cécile Pinet-Quénard – Human Resources Director
Cécile joined BNP Paribas in 2008 and held several positions within the Americas Region, CIB and ITG, after having started her career in companies such as Goldman Sachs and General Electric. She was appointed at the head of Arval France HR in 2021. In her position, Cécile upholds HR values that are important to her: kindness, rigor and fairness.
Ariane Govignon – Chief Risk Officer
Ariane Govignon joined BNP Paribas in 1996, working in credit, general inspection, Strategy and Performance management of transformation programs. She led during 10 years the Healthcare activity as CEO of CMV Mediforce and then as Head of Market within BNP Paribas Leasing Solutions. In February 2023 she became Chief Risk Officer at Arval.
Karen Brunot – Chief Sustainability Officer
Former Digital and Marketing Director of Arval France, Karen Brunot was appointed Chief Sustainability Officer of Arval on November 1, 2022. She leads Arval's sustainable development policy, in line with the BNP Paribas group's strategy, gives impetus to all companies to create a positive impact that combines economic, ecological and social performance. She leads the countries in the local deployment of this policy.
Agnès Dutot - Compliance Director
Agnès Dutot was appointed Arval Head of Compliance on October 31st, 2020. In her career of more than 30 years at BNP Paribas, she has held various positions in Finance. Previously, she was Global Head of Compliance at Leasing Solutions. In the 30 countries where Arval operates, Agnès Dutot is now responsible for ensuring, with her team, the financial security of the company, professional ethics and the protection of client interests.
Bertrand Gousset – Global Operations Director
With 30 years of experience within the BNP Paribas Group, Bertrand Gousset held the positions of Chief Financial Officer, International Director within BNP Paribas Leasing Solutions and member of its Executive Committee from 2005 to 2012. In 2012, he joined Retail banking in France as director of the Ile de France Nord business center, before becoming compliance manager from 2015 to 2018. In 2018, Bertrand GOUSSET joined Arval as deputy director of Retail activities. In 2020, he became Director of Global Operations at Arval France. In May 2022, he was appointed Arval Global Operations Director.
Thibault Lavigne - Development and Strategic Partnerships Director, Commercial Performance & Pricing Director
After joining Arval in 2007, Thibault Lavigne successively held the positions of Management Control Director, Financial Director and Chief Financial Officer before assuming his new role of Development and Strategic Parnerships Director in February 2020. Today, he represents Arval’s Executive Committee with its major partners, coordinating the many partnership projects within the 30 countries where Arval operates and exploring new development opportunities. Since December 2023, and on top of his current mission, he is in charge of all the commercial performance and pricing activities.
Grégory Libre – Marketing & Digital Director
Grégory Libre joined Arval France as Head of Sales Administration in 1996, progressing to Head of Strategic Accounts, Marketing Director, Sales and Marketing Director and Commercial Performance Director. As Marketing & Digital Director since April 2023, he is responsible for planning, developing, implementing and monitoring the overall business marketing & digital marketing strategy.
Stefan Majtán – International Managing Director
After a long experience in the automotive sector, Stefan Majtán joined Arval in 2003 developing and creating Arval entities in Central & Eastern Europe. From 2011 to 2019, he has been the head of the Central Europe Region of Arval with responsibility for Austria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Switzerland. In July 2019, he was appointed Arval Italy General Manager. In June 2022, he was appointed Arval International Managing Director, supervising all Arval Countries – except France, Italy, UK and Spain and Latin American Countries.
Stéphane de Marnhac - Chief Financial Officer
Since joining BNP Paribas in 1990, Stéphane de Marnhac has worked in structured finance, auditing and inspection, financing for M&A operations, and financing for corporate acquisitions. From 2012, he was Head of Investor Relations and Financial Information for the BNP Paribas Group. He moved into his current position as Chief Financial Officer of Arval in February 2020.
Christelle Paillès – International Communications Director
Christelle Paillès joined Arval in 2010 as Communications Manager. In 2019, she was appointed International Communications Director, reporting directly to Alain Van Groenendael. With her team, Christelle Paillès oversees all aspects of the company’s international communications, internally and externally, and supports countries in delivering the right messages and brand image in their respective markets.
Hugo Salaun - Chief Strategy Officer
Hugo Salaun joined the BNP Paribas Group in 2014, becoming the European Head of Payment Strategy and Innovation. In 2017, he joined Arval and was appointed Chief Marketing Officer. Since April 2023, he became Arval Chief Strategy Officer.
Christian Dubot – Head of Arval LEGAL
With over 20 years of experience in the legal field, before joining Arval in August 2024, Christian served as Head of international BNP Paribas Cardif LEGAL, ensuring legal risk management across 30 countries. Previously, he led Cardif legal operations in Asia-Pacific and has extensive experience in corporate governance, international legal affairs, and M&A.
Emilie Wirth – Retail Director
After she joined Arval in 1999, Emilie held various positions from business manager to Head of International Business development in 2014, before taking up the position of Mid Term Rental Director in 2018. Emilie is a graduate of SKEMA business School and holds a certificate of Digital Leadership Management from ESSEC Business School.
Arnaud Allegret – CIO - Chief Information Officer
After a first experience at Alstom Transport and in an Internet startup, Arnaud joined the BNP Paribas Group in 2001. Later in 2012, he became Global head of middle office operations in BNP Paribas Securities Services. He joins the BNP Paribas IT function in 2015 to create and lead the IT Digital Working department. In 2021, he becomes BNP Paribas Investment & Protection Services (IPS) IT Director and Head of Artificial Intelligence, Robotic Process Automation& Innovative Solutions. Arnaud became Chief Information Officer of Arval in June 2024.