BBVA Compass Bancshares, Inc., a Sunbelt-based bank holding company (BBVA Compass), reported today net income of $196 million for the fourth quarter of 2018, a 276 percent increase from the $52 million earned during the fourth quarter of 2017. Included in fourth quarter 2017 results is income tax expense of approximately $121 million related to the revaluation of net deferred tax assets at the lower statutory tax rate mandated by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (non-cash charge). Excluding the impact of this item, the year-over-year increase in net income for the fourth quarter of 2018 compared to adjusted net income* of $173 million for the fourth quarter of 2017 was 13 percent.

The previous year has come to a close, and with it comes reflection on what 2018 brought. However, a look forward to 2019 can also have its advantages.

The barriers keeping SMEs away from funding were one of the pivotal topics of the SME Finance Forum, held this week in Madrid. José Manuel González-Páramo analyzed how to improve access to financing for many micro, small and medium sized enterprises, as well as the regulatory framework for both banking and alternative funding sources,  “We need to eliminate barriers for SMEs’ to widen their funding sources,” he underscored.

BBVA Compass Bancshares, Inc., a Sunbelt-based bank holding company (BBVA Compass), announced today that the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Federal Reserve) did not object to its capital plan and capital actions proposed in the capital plan. BBVA Compass’ capital plan includes common dividends of $315 million during the covered period, subject to approval by BBVA Compass’ board of directors.

Türkiye Garanti Bankası A.Ş., announced its financial statements dated March 31, 2018. Based on the consolidated financials, in the 3 months period of 2018, Garanti’s asset size reached TL 359 billion 882 million, its contribution to the economy through loans and non-cash lending reached to TL 298 billion 250 million 713 thousand. The Bank delivered an ROAE (Return on Average Equity) of 18.3% and ROAA (Return on Average Assets) of 2.2%.

Garanti Bank CEO Fuat Erbil said the turkish bank’s performance last year far exceeded expectations and looks forward to extending that success this year. “Last year was much more positive than expected, both for the country, the sector and Garanti,” Fuat Erbil told journalists in a recent meeting. “As witnessed by the positive outlook for key indicators and investor interest, 2017 was a successful year for Turkey. The banking sector’s performance excelled expectations as domestic demand increased and economic activity as a whole expanded”.

BBVA today announced its strategy around climate change and sustainable development, Pledge 2025. The strategy will help the bank meet the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and is in line with the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. Pledge 2025 will help the bank align its activity to a 2ºC Scenario and strike a balance between sustainable energy and fossil fuel investments and is based on three lines of action: financing, management and engagement.

On January 31st, the European Banking Authority (EBA) announced the formal launch of this year’s EU-wide stress test exercise of the euro area. It also unveiled the macroeconomic scenarios under which the exercise will be carried out. The  adverse scenario implies a deviation of EU GDP from its baseline level by 8.3% in 2020, resulting in the most severe scenario to date. The EBA expects to publish the results of the exercise by 2 November 2018

BBVA took part in the first seminar organized by the Institute of Compliance Officers (IOC).  Executives of Spanish multinationals addressed the main challenges facing the profession in applying current regulations within a company. They underscored the fundamental role of the compliance officer in companies committed to transparency and good corporate governance.

Carlos Torres Vila, CEO of BBVA, last week participated in the World Economic Forum (WEF) at Davos, Switzerland. In this article, he explains how artificial intelligence and the global debate over the use of data took up a good part of the debates and discussions at this year’s meeting.

Garanti Bank has won an award recognizing its commitment to the principles of corporate governance and its compliance with the directives of Turkey´s Capital Markets Board (CMB).

The week of the publication of fourth quarter 2017 results (4Q17) begins and as it does, we remember the five keys to understanding a bank´s results. The following infographic shows how to interpret the most important figures.

In accordance with accounting regulation, BBVA will make an adjustment in its accounts regarding its stake in communications provider Telefónica. This entry does not involve any cash outflow, nor does it have any impact on the bank’s capital ratio or the payment of dividends. The adjustment will be reflected in the income statement for Q4-17.

BBVA Group Chief Risk Officer (CRO) Rafael Salinas analyzed the challenges of digital transformation and the rapid evolution of technological developments in risk management at the event entitled ‘CRO Forum,  Rethinking Risk Management’ organized in Amsterdam by RiskMinds International.

Garanti Bank on November 22 has successfully refinanced its 367-day Dual Currency Term Loan Facility dated November 23, 2016 with a 100% rollover ratio. The new Facility is comprised of $405.0 million and €648.5 million 367-day tranches and a $180.0 million two-year tranche.

BBVA today announced an agreement with a subsidiary of Cerberus Capital Management, L.P. (Cerberus) to create a joint venture (JV) for its real estate business in Spain, reducing almost entirely its exposure to non core real estate assets. On the closing of the operation, BBVA will sell an 80% stake in the JV to Cerberus for about €4 billion. The transaction marks a milestone in BBVA Group’s strategy.

BBVA received a binding offer from The Bank of Nova Scotia (Scotiabank) for its 68.19% stake in BBVA Chile and other related businesses such as the life insurance arm for about $2.2 billion (1.85 billion euros)¹. The offer does not include the automobile financing activity of Grupo Forum, that will continue to be 100% owned by BBVA.

Traditionally, it has been held that the value of a company equaled its net worth, that is, those elements that constitute the company’s own funds. However, this item (which is defined as the difference between assets and liabilities) doesn’t take into account an intangible asset that is inherent to a company and which can generate future profits: goodwill.

The BBVA Group takes another step forward in its digital transformation and in improving customer experience, with a new website for shareholders and investors. The site includes new content and the latest trends in browsing, and is accessible from any mobile device.

Today BBVA announced financial results for the nine first months of 2017. “Quarter after quarter, BBVA keeps posting solid, recurring and sustainable results,” said CEO Carlos Torres Vila. What figures explain this solidity? Here are the six more noteworthy:

• Operating income: Recurring revenues continued their upward trend, growing 4.2% between January and September. This, together with cost containment efforts (expenses dropped 1.7% in the year to September), drove operating income to a record €9.52 billion
• Risks: The NPL ratio continued to improve, reaching 4.5% in September (vs. 4.8% in June), the lowest level in the past five years. Coverage increased to 72%
• Capital: The fully-loaded CET1 ratio rose to 11.2% in September, reflecting a capital generation of 30 basis points in the first nine months of the year
• Transformation: The digital customer base grew 24% y-o-y to 21.1 million in September. Of these, the number of customers banking with their smartphones surged 43% to 15.8 million

BBVA Group Executive Chairman Francisco González presided over the first edition of the Spanish Computer Science Society (SCIE) – BBVA Foundation Research Awards. These accolades recognized the work of six young Ph.D. recipients who are conducting high-level research in Spain.

This week, several financial institutions will be releasing their earnings reports for the third quarter of the year (3Q 2017). Any bank’s profit and loss account can be interpreted following the five keys we describe in the infographic below.

In the month since Harvey hit Houston, BBVA Compass has published a series of articles to help its customers and the public at large understand the city’s new reality, how to move forward, and how the bank will be there to provide support.

After barreling into the state of Texas, as one of the largest and most damaging Hurricanes in U.S history, Hurricane Harvey continues to devastate the Corpus Christi-Houston-Galveston area with catastrophic destruction, human losses, and unprecedented flooding.

As the region begins to pick up the pieces in the weeks, months and years to come, there is a growing concern about the impact that Hurricane Harvey will have on the regional and national economy.

“Developing better solutions for customers through technology,” is one of the goals of BBVA. And the bank is managing to achieve it. CEO Carlos Torres Vila, along with CFO Jaime Sáenz de Tejada, used the occasion of the presentation of bank’s second quarter 2017 results to offer some interesting data on the bank´s digital transformation.

BBVA Compass Bancshares, Inc., a Sunbelt-based bank holding company (BBVA Compass), reported today record net income of $157 million for the second quarter of 2017, a 29 percent increase from the $123 million earned during the second quarter of 2016 and a 30 percent increase from the $121 million earned during the first quarter of 2017. Return on average assets and return on average tangible equity(1) for the second quarter of 2017 were 0.72 percent and 7.93 percent, respectively.

The week of the publication of second quarter 2017 results (2T 2017) begins and as it does, we remember the five keys to understanding a bank´s results. The following infographic shows how to interpret the most important figures.

The European Commission just unveiled a new directive on corporate governance, and more specifically on shareholders’ rights, which will have to be transposed nationwide by June 2019. The Commission’s initiative serves a dual purpose:  It wants to promote the use of new technologies in the corporate governance of companies while increasing the commitment to transparency among institutional investors, asset managers and the companies in which they invest.

The 1973 oil crisis, which arose due to the tensions that led to the Yom Kippur War, set off a global chain reaction that also affected Spain. The increase in commodities prices, and a steady decline in Spain’s economic cycle, led to truly difficult times for the banking sector. The upward trend that had begun in the early 1960s was immediately stopped, and worrisome warning signs began to appear, such as an increase in unemployment and a fall in the value of money.

Millennials are perhaps the most overanalyzed and overgeneralized generation in history, and the myths surrounding them are endless. From “clueless” to “brainiest” and “self-obsessed” to “socially conscious,” the stereotypes of those born between 1982 and 1995 are often contradictory and range from flattering to derogatory. But just like any other generation, Millennials are by no means homogenous.

BBVA Compass President and CEO Onur Genç has been on the job for just six months, but already, he sees a wealth of opportunity for BBVA in the U.S.

BBVA’s expansion to the U.S. came after it found success in South America and Mexico. The U.S. was an attractive market from a demographics standpoint, with a growing population, a solid economy – which also happened to be the world’s largest – and a positive banking environment. Also, given the Group’s leadership in Latin America, the U.S. with its large and growing Hispanic population was a natural choice.

Although BBVA opened its first U.S. branch in New York City in 1988, it wasn’t until 2004, with the acquisition of a small Southern California bank, Valley Bank, that it rolled out its first retail banking operations in the U.S. Over the next two years, the acquisition of three more banks – Laredo National Bank, Texas State Bank and State National Bank – allowed BBVA to become a leading bank in Texas. By then, it was clear that BBVA was targeting the U.S. market as a pivotal element in its strategy to become a relevant global player. A reality that crystalized 10 years ago, with BBVA’s acquisition of Compass Bank in 2007.

The subsequent legal reform that took place in the 1950s and early 1960s bore their fruit in the economy and in the banking sector. In the latter, the biggest banks, especially those from Vizcaya, were stronger thanks to a liberalized panorama that enabled their growth and expansion following two complicated decades in the Franco regime.

Before long, the steps taken in the 1950s to abandon the autarchy that had trapped the Spanish economy began to produce results, prompting technocratic ministers to propose additional measures that would put Spain on the path to further liberalization. The route taken by the dictator would still require time, but during the 1960s, the economy was experiencing moments of positive change. The new legislation would encourage private banks to create specific industrial banks.

We have already seen what the foreign exchange market is and how it works, as well as different exchange rate systems. Here, we will analyze the broad range of participants that engage in a market that, in average, churns around 5 trillion dollars on a daily basis.

Yesterday, Tradebe obtained the world’s first green syndicated financing in term loan format, for a total of €265 million. The transaction was signed by 11 national and foreign financial institutions with strong oversubscription under BBVA’s leadership as Facility and Green Agent, Coordinator and Sole Bookrunner.

The Spanish economy was at a delicate point at the end of the 1950s. Following the civil war, Franco’s dictatorship managed to revive the economy through major intervention and the imposition of a strong autarchy that isolated Spain commercially from the western countries. The economy grew through these severe measures but indicators such as inflation began to be a concern. The time had come to change the rules of the game, at least in part.

BBVA Global Executive Chairman Francisco González was very positive about the future of Mexico during his visit to the country for the annual meeting of BBVA Bancomer’s regional Board members. “The resilience of the Mexican economy to the recent challenges it has faced is admirable,” he affirmed. “In terms of the rest of Latin America, I’m also optimistic. Populist movements are losing steam and economic and political rationality is moving ahead.”

BBVA customers can now interact in Spain with the bank via social networks and instant messaging services. BBVA has developed two new tools, Chatbot and BBVA Cashup, which allow customers to access financial information via Facebook and Telegram, and also to make payments via Bizum from Whatsapp or any messaging service.

BBVA offers the best mobile banking services in Europe, according to the recent Forrester Research report, “European Mobile Banking Benchmark” (EMBB), which analyzes the apps of 11 retail banks in Europe. BBVA’s Turkish bank Garanti was ranked fourth in the 2017 edition of the EMBB.

Until the first years of the 1940s, neither Banco de Bilbao nor Banco de Vizcaya had a permanent chairman. Despite the fact that the former was founded in 1857, and the latter, in 1901, their respective boards of directors had previously been chaired by individual board members in rotating periods of one year.

Customer deposits are the principal source of liquidity for retail banks. But they also go to the capital markets, through debt issues. In this way, the banks can obtain financing and also meet the requirements of an increasingly demanding regulation. Depending on their characteristics, these issues are more or less similar to shares, which means that they also have priority when losses are taken, in the event the financial institution were to go bankrupt

Minister Benjamin’s Banking Law of 1946 further pulled in the already tight reins on the Spanish banking sector. In spite of everything, the two banks from Bilbao managed to grow and to distinguish themselves amongst their national competitors. Even before the greater growth that took place during the 1950s, Banco de Bilbao and Banco de Vizcaya had ended the 1940s in very good health.

Technology is redefining how we bank – from mobile apps to online account management – we increasingly use digital means to make our money and data work harder for us.