Carlos Torres Vila highlights BBVA’s record dividend to shareholders
BBVA Chair Carlos Torres Vila has addressed shareholders ahead of the Annual General Meeting to be held on March 20 in Bilbao, where “the main milestones of 2025 and the progress in our strategy” will be reviewed. In the video message, he underscored that BBVA will propose a cash dividend of €0.92 per share—“the highest in our history”—in the context of record earnings and after “another excellent year for BBVA,” marked by the combination of growth and profitability.
In 2025, BBVA’s lending grew by 16 percent and its profitability stood above 19 percent. “This growth drives economic and social progress,” said Carlos Torres Vila. Over the past year, the bank supported 160,000 families in accessing housing, backed one million SMEs and self-employed individuals, and financed more than 73,000 large corporations. BBVA also reached the highest net attributable profit in its history, €10.511 billion, while shareholders’ equity has grown at an average annual rate of 16 percent over the past four years.
In the video, Carlos Torres Vila highlights that this “unprecedented value creation” makes it possible to accelerate shareholder remuneration. BBVA will distribute more than €5.2 billion as an ordinary dividend—50 percent of 2025 earnings—and will submit to the AGM a proposal for a cash dividend of €0.92 per share, “the highest in our history.” This is in addition to the execution of the nearly €4 billion extraordinary share buyback program announced in December. “Taken together, more than €9.2 billion, reflecting our firm commitment to delivering an attractive remuneration to our shareholders. In addition, we currently have a significant capital surplus, above 12 percent, which will translate into higher distributions going forward,” he stated.
In the first year of the 2025–2029 Strategic Plan, BBVA added 11.5 million new customers and recorded particularly strong growth in corporate banking and sustainable business. The Chair also highlighted progress in artificial intelligence, stating that after leading the sector’s digitalization, the bank is reinventing itself “to lead in the era of Artificial Intelligence.” BBVA faces 2026 “with confidence,” supported by leading franchises, a solid capital position and a clear strategy to continue generating long-term value.