Groupe Bull chief executive Guy de Panafieu said the French computer maker will hire at least 2,000 to 3,000 people this year, of whom 60% will be young people. De Panafieu also sounded the alarm concerning the state of French companies’ preparedness for the euro and the Year 2000. He indicated that the cost of converting to the euro could cost between a third and the whole of a company’s total IT budget. He also confirmed that a second generation of chip card, which will allow both identification and payment, will soon be installed in markets in the US and Europe.
