[5][6] From 1966 to 2003 it was known as one of the Trois Vieilles ("Old Three") major French commercial banks, along with Banque Nationale de Paris (from 2000 BNP Paribas) and Crédit Lyonnais.

In 1871, Société Générale moved into the public French issues market with a national debenture loan launched to cover the war indemnity stipulated in the Treaty of Frankfurt.

The bank had its Brussels office from 1898 in the prestigious Hôtel de Ligne [fr] on Rue Royale,[11] and also maintained a branch in Antwerp,[12] at No.72-76 of Meir.

It moved into Italy and Mexico and altered the status of its establishments in Africa after decolonisation, in accordance with the laws passed by these newly independent countries.

From the mid-1960s, Société Générale gave new impetus to its French network, with an acceleration in growth after 1966 following elimination of prior authorisation for opening branch offices.

The following year during the Bastille Day holiday, a meticulously planned robbery was carried out[17] against Société Générale's most heavily fortified vault in France by ex-paratrooper and wedding photographer Albert Spaggiari.

[18] The robbery which involved secretly tunneling underground and compromising the walls of the bank vault netted Spaggiari over 12 million[clarification needed] in cash, jewellery, and bullion.

[16] From the beginning of the 1980s, against a backdrop of deregulation and technological change, internationalisation of the markets and the emergence of new financial instruments, Société Générale set itself two commercial objectives.

In 1986, Société Générale created Fimat International Banque S.A., a global brokerage,[19] offering a range of clearing and execution services on listed or OTC derivatives and cash products.

[21] In subsequent years, the Société Générale Group has focused on developing its activities around three core businesses through a combination of organic growth and acquisitions.

At the same time, Société Générale looked to secure the long-term loyalty of its customers (launch of "one account number for life" and introduction of Jazz, a package of service offers).

In 1998 Société Générale paid $540 million in cash to acquire Cowen & Company, a New York investment bank that specialized in the health care, technology and communications industries.

[23] In 1998, Société Générale set up Retail Banking outside France as a separate division, underscoring the Group's resolve to make this business one of its strategic development axes.

Investment banking at Societe Generale in Russia was run by Jacques Der Megreditchian until 2000[24] At that time, Société Générale became officially concerned with money laundering scandal and underground economy.

Africa is also a major area of interest for the bank, with the 2002 purchase of Eqdom in Morocco (the market leader in consumer lending) and Union Internationale de Banques [fr] in Tunisia.

After pursuing a deliberate policy of acquisitions in 1998, Société Générale Private Banking consolidated and developed its franchise in 1999 against a backdrop of tougher competition.

The newspaper quickly published a retraction and its apologies but, despite that, the rumour gathered pace, notably on social networks, resulting in a spectacular fall in Société Générale's share price and in bearish speculation.

Société Générale successfully filed a suit in the UK against Associated Newspapers (the Mail on Sunday's parent company) for "substantial damage to its reputation and prejudice to its trade".

[30] Bearish pressure, influenced by speculation but also by investor suspicion, continued to affect Société Générale's share price through to the end of 2011.

Additionally, Philippe Heim, who serves as the head of international retail banking, financial services, and insurance, will also vacate his position as deputy chief executive immediately.

[32] In December 2013, the European Commission fined the bank close to 446 million Euro for its role in the LIBOR scandal regarding interest rate derivatives.

On the eve and afternoon of 25 January 2008, Police raided the Paris headquarters of Société Générale and Kerviel's apartment in the western suburb of Neuilly, to seize his computer files.

"[50] Spiegel Online stated that Kerviel may have lost 2.8 billion dollars on 140,000 contracts earlier negotiated due to DAX falling 600 points.

Jérôme Kerviel was found guilty of the three charges filed against him: breach of trust, fraudulent inputting of data into an IT system and forgery and use of forged documents.

[55] On 21 March 2008 Société Générale filed suit in Istanbul Commercial Court against Goldaş, a Turkish Jewelry firm, claiming the company had not paid for 15 tonnes(15,000 kg) of gold it had received through a consignment agreement.

In February 2014, Société Générale agreed to pay $122 million to the Fannie Mae and the Freddie Mac for misleading them in the purchase of mortgage-backed securities.

[62] In January 2017, Société Générale agreed to pay $50 million to settle a claim by the American government of fraudulent concealment of residential mortgage-backed securities quality.

[66] In March 2016, Société Générale was mentioned in the Panama Papers: It was among the 10 banks that asked for the most offshore shell companies for the account of its clients via the Mossack Fonseca firm.

[68] In 2012, CEO Frédéric Oudéa said that Société Générale withdrew from all countries belonging to the grey list of tax havens compiled by the OECD, including Panama.

[70] In November 2018, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced a $53,966,916.05 settlement with Société Générale S.A. to settle potential civil liability for apparent violations of U.S. sanctions.