As early as the 1880s, Société Générale has been looking towards Russia, but to begin with, the bank finances expansion of major industrial manufacturers, rather than establish a local presence itself. Then, in 1901, it establishes its own subsidiary company in St Petersburg: the Banque du Nord. Before long, the new bank merges with the Banque Russo-Chinoise, which has a strong and established presence alongside the Trans-Siberian and Trans-Manchurian railroads. The result is the birth in February 1910 of the Banque Russo-Asiatique (BRA), which gives Société Générale the opportunity to open branches in both India and China.

Building on its commercial banking expertise, the bank's Paris head office begins to earn revenue from currency exchange deals, and assumes a key role in the funding of trade between the two countries.