For the past couple of weeks, Opel and Vauxhall customers in a number
of Western European countries have been able to get access to more
attractive financing options for their vehicle purchases. This is thanks
to the creation of Opel Financial Services, a new European captive
finance brand under the direction of GM Financial, one of the world’s
largest automotive lenders.
Opel CFO Michael Lohscheller said: “The creation of Opel Financial
Services in early April was a very important step for our brand. It will
bring additional momentum to our product offensive, with 23 new models
and 13 new powertrains on the way through 2016. A captive financial
service entity strongly supports our sales growth plan and thereby will
contribute to our strategic plan DRIVE! 2022. This US$1.7 billion
investment in GM’s European business once again shows GM’s commitment to
the European continent and to growth here.”
Jaap Timmer, Chairman of the European Opel Dealer Association (Euroda), said: “For us as dealers, this is a real advantage in terms of competitiveness. We now have the opportunity to even better tailor our financial offers to our customers’ needs and maintain close customer interaction throughout the entire ownership experience.”
Timmer added: “On an industry average, around 50 per cent of retail customers finance their cars through manufacturers’ house banks. The close relationship between manufacturers and their financing houses allows for even more attractive joint offers at the point of purchase – ones in which the dealer, manufacturer and bank can collectively develop strong incentives.”
For Opel and Vauxhall customers in Germany, the U.K., Italy, Belgium,
the Netherlands, Luxemburg, Sweden, Switzerland and Austria, the
creation of this new financing service means more attractive purchasing
options. Opel Financial Services networks will be added in other
European countries at a later stage.
The investment is part of a global acquisition that was announced in
early April when General Motors Financial bought Ally Financial Inc.
financing operations in Europe and Latin America. With this initiative,
GM Financial will – once all approvals from authorities are received –
be in the position to serve customers and dealers in markets that
account for around 80 percent of GM sales worldwide through brands such
as Opel, Vauxhall, Chevrolet, Buick and Cadillac.
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