Bourse Direct 2FA: how to set up an authenticator app
By the Novaz team · Updated October 29, 2026
Novaz steps checked against version 1.0.5
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Bourse Direct is a French online broker, and its client area (Espace Client) is where you place orders and manage your accounts. Its two-factor authentication is called authentification renforcée (strengthened authentication): your usual password, then a one-time code. You can get that code by SMS or from an authenticator app, which Bourse Direct calls La sécurisation par application (TOTP). You can turn on both (Bourse Direct, archived).
You can't skip it for long if you move money: the outgoing transfer page won't open until strengthened authentication is on (Bourse Direct, archived). This guide uses Authenticator App - Novaz on iPhone. Any authenticator app works the same way.
How we checked this guide: the Bourse Direct details come from Bourse Direct's own FAQ, website and general terms, linked below, which we read on October 21, 2026. Bourse Direct's site refused our automated requests, so we read archived copies saved on web.archive.org: the sign-in FAQ from March 13, 2026, the transfer page from July 13, 2025, and the terms from May 14, 2026. We haven't tested them on a Bourse Direct account, so a label may differ slightly. The Novaz steps are checked against the app, version 1.0.5.
What Bourse Direct documents, and what it doesn't
Bourse Direct's FAQ explains what strengthened authentication is and when you'll need it, but it doesn't walk through the setup screens. The SMS method sends a code to the mobile number saved in your client area. If you can't turn either method on, the FAQ sends you to customer service at 01 56 88 40 40. Bourse Direct's general terms say that a client who refuses two-factor authentication bears the consequences of leaving their sign-in unprotected (Bourse Direct, archived).
The FAQ also links a short video, which we couldn't watch, so nothing below comes from it.
Turn on 2FA with an authenticator app
- Sign in to your client area on the Bourse Direct website from the Accès Espace Client page, with your username (identifiant) and password.
- Start the setup when Bourse Direct offers it. The outgoing transfer page, for example, shows a Mettre en place l'authentification renforcée (set up strengthened authentication) button (Bourse Direct, archived).
- Choose the authenticator app method. The FAQ calls it La sécurisation par application (TOTP); the setup screen may word it differently.
- Add the account to Novaz. If a QR code appears, tap +, then Scan QR code, and point the camera at it. If the QR code is on the same iPhone, take a screenshot, tap +, then Choose a photo. See scanning a QR code on the same iPhone.
- If you're given a text key instead, tap +, then Enter key manually, and fill in Service (Bourse Direct), Account if you like, and Setup key. See What is a 2FA setup key?
- Type the code Novaz shows to confirm.
Bourse Direct doesn't say how long its codes are or how often they change. Scan the QR code if you can: it carries those settings to the app, while a typed key always gives 6-digit codes every 30 seconds.
The FAQ's list of suitable apps includes 1Password and your phone's built-in password app. To weigh keeping codes next to passwords, see Apple Passwords or an authenticator app?
When Bourse Direct asks for a code
According to the FAQ, you'll need a code (Bourse Direct, archived):
- every 30 days to get into your account, on top of your password;
- when you sign in on a new device or browser;
- for sensitive operations, such as changing your password, an outgoing transfer, or adding an IBAN.
On a device and browser you use often, you can answer yes to Faire confiance à cet appareil (trust this device) to be asked less often.
If Bourse Direct rejects your code
Bourse Direct's FAQ has no advice on rejected app codes. The usual cause is the iPhone's clock: open Settings > General > Date & Time and turn on Set Automatically. Novaz warns you when the clock is 15 seconds or more off. Watch your password attempts too: after 3 failed sign-ins, Bourse Direct locks the client area and emails you an unlock link. Other causes are in Authenticator code not working?
Backup options and changing phones
The official pages don't mention backup or recovery codes, and they don't explain how to move the app method to a new phone. The one fallback they describe is the SMS method, which can stay on next to the app, so keep your mobile number current.
With Novaz's iCloud backup or a backup file, you can restore your accounts on the new iPhone. Without one, ask customer service how to set the app up again before you give up the old phone. See How to transfer your authenticator app to a new iPhone.
If you lose your authenticator
If SMS is on as well, use that to get in. Otherwise, call Bourse Direct on 01 56 88 40 40. The FAQ page lists hours of 9:00 to 20:00 on weekdays and 11:00 to 15:00 on Saturdays. If you think someone else has your sign-in details, the FAQ says to reset your password right away and call as soon as you can (Bourse Direct, archived). It doesn't say what proof of identity is asked for or how long a reset takes. More in Lost the phone with your authenticator app?
Bourse Direct doesn't document a way to turn strengthened authentication off.
