BBVA Italy Expands Its Investment and Lending Offering to Reach One Million Customers by 2026
BBVA celebrated the fourth anniversary of its digital retail bank in Italy, which currently has over 800,000 customers and expects to reach one million in 2026. Since last November, BBVA Italy has increased its customer base by 35 percent, and has multiplied the financing granted to customers eightfold, including 1,800 mortgages. The success of the BBVA Italy model is driving the Group’s organic growth strategy across the rest of Europe, as CEO Onur Genç explained at a meeting with the media at the bank’s new offices in Milan. “Our priority is to consolidate our progress and ensure sustainable long-term growth: expanding our presence in key financial products, such as investments, and continuing to attract customers from traditional banks seeking a more modern experience”, Genç said.
- Walter Rizzi, Head of Digital Banking for BBVA in Italy; Onur Genç, BBVA’s CEO; and Murat Kalkan, Head of Digital Banks at BBVA, during the event (JPG)
- Walter Rizzi, Head of Digital Banking for BBVA in Italy, explaining BBVA Italy’s growth forecasts (JPG)
- Murat Kalkan, Head of Digital Banks at BBVA, presenting the pilot of the BBVA application in ChatGPT (JPG)
Over the past four years, BBVA Italy has gradually broadened its range of products, with no fees and an attractive three percent return on its accounts, to build a universal banking offering that now includes lending, mortgages and investment products. By doing so, the bank aims to continue attracting new customers. “We want to keep growing our customer base, but we also want to support the customers we already serve in more aspects of their financial lives. We want to be their primary bank,” said Walter Rizzi, Head of Digital Banking for BBVA in Italy.
To achieve this, BBVA Italy will continue strengthening its mortgage and credit card offerings, while also expanding its investment products, which so far have been limited to certain funds. Early next year, the bank will launch a wider range of ETFs and reinforce its local team with new specialized advisors. Looking ahead to 2026, the bank’s strategy focuses on developing an advisory model that will be accessible to all customers, combining personal support with technology, with artificial intelligence playing a key role in upcoming versions of the app.
Innovation and user experience remain pillars of BBVA’s digital value proposition. “Our approach combines the best of both worlds: the trust and broad range of products of a traditional bank, with the digital experience, agility and competitive pricing of a neobank,” explained Murat Kalkan, Head of Digital Banks at BBVA.
The Head of Digital Banks announced that BBVA is preparing an app integrated with ChatGPT, which will allow users to ask about BBVA’s offering in Italy and Germany directly in the OpenAI assistant, such as account conditions, cards, or savings products. According to Kalkan, this new conversational app concept showcased in Milan will become one of the first financial apps available in the OpenAI Store when it launches in Europe. “BBVA’s digital banks in Italy and Germany are setting new standards for innovation. Bringing BBVA into ChatGPT marks the beginning of a new chapter, one in which AI becomes a daily part of banking, helping customers manage their financial lives in a more natural and intelligent way,” he added.
BBVA brings its technological, innovation and financial capabilities to its digital banks, which, since the launch of BBVA Italy in 2021 and BBVA Germany in June 2025, have become the spearhead of the Group’s organic growth strategy in new markets.
Profitability and growth
BBVA achieved a record profit of €10 billion in 2024. In the first nine months of 2025, the Group earned €8 billion, up 20 percent year-over-year in constant euros. Return on tangible equity (ROTE) reached an exceptional 20 percent, while lending growth advanced 16 percent year-over-year, well above the average for major European banks. “BBVA represents the best possible combination of profitability and growth,” said Onur Genç, who underlined the bank’s ability to anticipate change and its forward-looking vision as key drivers of BBVA’s strategy. These factors enabled the Group to attract 11 million new customers last year, two-thirds through digital channels.
In this context, BBVA Italy has become a success story for the entire Group, thanks to customer adoption that has exceeded all expectations, reaching the target initially set for 2026 two years ahead of schedule. It has also positioned BBVA among the fastest-growing digital banks in Europe, steadily advancing toward profitability.
In addition, BBVA has established itself as one of the most highly rated banks, both in the market and by its own customers. BBVA Italy now ranks number one in Net Promoter Score, and its app has the highest rating on both Google Play and the App Store in the industry, reflecting an outstanding experience across all our channels. The bank was also recognized by Forbes as one of the best banks in Italy, and by Corriere della Sera for the best customer service.
Looking ahead, BBVA’s CEO stressed that the Group aims to consolidate the success of BBVA Italy, continue improving its products and customer experience, and reinforce its position as one of Europe’s most trusted digital banks.