Quality Funds, BBVA’s platform specialized in international funds, was named the best pan-European platform specialized in investment funds, according to the prestigious 2020 report by Platforum.

The COVID-19 pandemic’s effects on the financial industry and consumers have been well-chronicled in traditional and social media alike. Banking may never be the same moving forward, in many different ways. That could also include an expedited disappearance of cash, a mode of payment that was already on the decline. 

BBVA in Switzerland has launched a new online platform in record time, targeting prospective customers who are interested in opening an account. They can now confirm their identity over a video call and digitally sign the contract required to open the account.

Propel Venture Partners, the independent venture capital fund backed by BBVA, is celebrating its fourth anniversary of business this year. In this interview, Propel Partner Jay Reinemann, explains in the entity’s journey in these years and what are its next challenges. “The fintech sector is only going to expand and innovate faster and faster,” says Reinemann. “It’s a great time to be working in this industry.”

Commercial banking veteran Orlando Castañeda has been named BBVA USA McAllen City President, where he will lead all Commercial operations in the market.

BBVA has certified as green three non-recourse factoring operations from the wind turbine manufacturer Nordex. Closed in 2019 for approximately €265 million, the operations will deduct invoices from wind turbine supplies that the Germany company will provide the builder of various wind farms.

After naming a new CEO to take over its Houston market to start the year, BBVA USA has now announced that it has appointed Dee Hunt as its new Houston Global Wealth Executive.

MAPFRE has strengthened its life-savings insurance product portfolio with the launch of Unit Linked Valor Activo III. The product is linked to the performance of the Eurostoxx index and to a BBVA social bond. The bank will devote the proceeds to fund social projects. With this new operation, BBVA is supporting the Spanish insurance company’s efforts in broadening its sustainable commercial offering.

The 2019 syndicated loan market in Spain remained stable compared to 2018, primarily due to available liquidity —from banks and and institutional investors— in an environment of historically low interest rates. In addition, the European Central Bank has has all but ensured that interest rates will continue to hover in negative territory, given expectations for inflation over the next three years.

Since they were first launched in January 2019, this new generation of cards has distributed millions of air miles, which translates into hundreds of thousands of plane tickets. Shop&Fly card holders can fly to any destination in the world with the airline they choose, paying the taxes with the card.

For the second consecutive year, Global Finance magazine has recognized BBVA’s treasury and cash management services, naming the bank as the Top Treasury and Cash Management Provider in the Southwest for 2020. 

The 2019 bond market was marked by record levels of bond issuance, exceeding the 2018 volume issued in Spain by 29 percent. Also noteworthy, the green, social, and sustainability bond issuance activity saw impressive positive performance, with a volume of close to €230 billion worldwide. BBVA stood out as the most active player with a green bond issuance volume of above €3.3 billion.

The European Investment Bank (EIB) and BBVA are joining forces to provide financing on favourable terms for Spanish SMEs. EU bank Vice-President Emma Navarro and BBVA CEO Onur Genç signed an agreement today in Madrid enabling the Spanish bank to provide EUR 600m to support the investments of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). With this agreement, BBVA will be able to offer them favourable financing in terms of both maturity and interest rates.

Dillan Knudson has taken somewhat of a circuitous route throughout his career in the financial industry – and beyond – leading to his recent appointment as BBVA Houston CEO.

BBVA USA has appointed Luis Ramirez to Corporate Banking Manager in the Denver area, adding to a growing operation in the bank’s Colorado commercial team.

The digital app market is evolving. In Asia and Latin America, the so-called super apps – standalone apps capable of offering everything that users need – are already a reality.  Financial services are one of the cornerstones on which these apps are building their ecosystems, which feature everything from social networking, to food delivery or transport booking features.

Garanti BBVA customers carry out more than 88 percent of their non-cash transactions without ever setting foot in a branch — using either the mobile banking app, the website, or ATMs.

Corporate and investment banking focus its activity on financing the development of enterprises and corporations and catering to their investment needs. Wholesale clients – which can be anywhere from different-sized companies to financial institutions or institutional investors – require more sophisticated financial products, either because of their size or the nature of their activity. In this guide we take a look at eight basic concepts that will help you understand the fundamentals of this business.

Doğan Holding’s subsidiary Suzuki Motor Vehicles Marketing Inc. became the first Turkish company to use Garanti BBVA’s Global Payments product featuring SWIFT FileAct.

Garanti BBVA continues to raise the bar by delivering state-of-the art functionality that helps big businesses and SMEs alike with their business needs.

BBVA USA has appointed Heather Pesikoff as its new Senior Trust Advisor and Head of Specialized Trust Services within its Asset Management team.

The British magazine Private Banker International of Verdict publishing group named BBVA’s Swiss unit as the winner in the ‘Outstanding Customer Relationship Service and Engagement 2019’ category. The honor recognized BBVA’s international private banking model, its global investment offering, and the personalization of its services, all founded on a holistic approach to wealth management.

For the fourth consecutive year, the Swiss private banking sector has turned out for Private Banking & Wealth Management: Switzerland 2019, the leading industry conference and award ceremony that will bring together more than 250 banking executives, technology vendors, and specialists in other financial services. BBVA is one of the sponsors of this year’s event.

BBVA USA, in its continued commitment to creating opportunities for the area’s business landscape, announced today that it has added five veteran bankers to its Houston Commercial Emerging Companies team.

BBVA launches ESIConnect, a new platform for portfolio, securities and fund service in order to give coverage to investment firms and their customers in the framework of the advisory and discretionary portfolio management services the investment firms provide them.

Garanti BBVA recently took part in Turkey’s 2019 Bonds, Loans & Sukuk Conference in Istanbul, where participants discussed the latest developments in bonds, syndicated loans and ‘sukuk’ markets. Sukuks are financial certificates, similar to bonds, that comply with Islamic law, or Sharia principles.

BBVA is expanding its range of sustainable products. Starting on December 2nd, the bank will begin selling sustainable financial contracts. BBVA will invest the amount obtained from customers in companies that are considered sustainable based on certain criteria for inclusion, which will determine the green, social or sustainable nature of the investment.

BBVA’s Turkish unit successfully refinanced a syndicated loan on Friday, with demand exceeding the initial transaction amount.  The new facility is comprised of $229.5 million and €518.8 million with a 367-day maturity.

Luisa Gómez Bravo, currently BBVA’s Global Head of Corporate and Investment Banking (CIB) — the bank’s wholesale banking department — has an extensive track record in banking. After graduating in law and business administration at ICADE in Madrid, she worked for several years in London for American investment banking firms and in 1998 she moved to BBVA. Since then, she has held various management positions at the bank, and at the end of 2018, she was appointed head of the investment banking unit.

She is passionate about broadening her professional experience by taking on new challenges that arise each day. “I like spreading this enthusiasm and ambition to the BBVA CIB team because I believe that we have a great culture of leadership and an enormous capacity to take on the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead,” she says.

Luisa demonstrates this same passion in her personal life. She enjoys spending the weekends with her husband and four children, ensuring she gets as much quality time with them as possible.

Garanti BBVA organized a foreign trade seminar in Istanbul as part of its commitment to making a difference for its clients. At the event, the bank shared its experiences in foreign trade financing, and provided customers updated information about foreign trade regulations, payment methods and the latest developments in the field.

Stores, restaurants and hotel chains in Spain are offering tourists from other countries the possibility of paying with their smartphones. Payments with QR codes allow companies to streamline the process and boost sales. Platforms like WeChat Pay and Alipay are central to the shopping experience of tourists from China, one of the most profitable for the country.

Garanti BBVA Mortgage unit has joined the Energy Efficient Mortgages Initiative (EEMI) Pilot Scheme which is supported by the European Union’s Energy Efficient Mortgages Action Plan (EeMap) Initiative, thus becoming the first EEM member from Turkey. As such, Garanti BBVA Mortgage joins 48 other lending institutions who have committed to testing the final energy efficient mortgages framework by implementing it into their existing product lines and processes.

Ride sharing giant Uber yesterday announced it was launching a new venture, Uber Money, becoming the latest big tech business to move deeper into financial services.

Garanti BBVA recently launched an electronic platform known as Elektronik Teminat Mektubu Platformu, or ETMP, to provide customers letters of guarantee electronically. Provided by Kredi Kayıt Bürosu (KKB), Garanti BBVA customers who are KKB Findeks members get free access to the platform.

Transaction banking is a unit within Corporate & Investment Banking that covers the needs of companies and institutions in terms of managing their liquidity and the related risks. It also encompassess the financing of international trade, custody services and working capital needs. Transaction banking is a fundamental business for banks due to the recurring incomes and the potential to retain clients and boost loyalty.

BBVA today tapped the markets with its third senior non-preferred bond of 2019. The €1 billion 5-year issue was priced at mid swap plus 80 basis points, with a coupon of 0.375 percent, the lowest for a senior non preferred debt issue in Spain as well as the lowest for BBVA senior debt (preferred and non preferred). Demand peaked at €1.8 billion with more than 130 orders.

Summer days are dropping like the gold, brown and red leaves of fall. School has started for students across the nation, and vacation days are becoming few and far between. But why not plan ahead and think about investing in a property that could bring both memories and lucrative situations?

BBVA and Pestana Hotel Group have reached a new milestone in the sustainable finance market, issuing the world’s first green bond in the hotel industry, according to the International Capital Markets Association’s (ICMA) Green Bond Principles. The €60 million bond has a maturity of 6 years and was placed among professional institutional investors.

Good financial health is a growing and serious concern. Individuals who exhibit financial vulnerability may spread negative effects to their households, compromising their well-being. It is therefore critical to understand financial health and the extent to which it can contribute to improved financial resilience. According to a recent report by BBVA Research, digitalization and financial education are key elements to be included in any public or private measures intended to help improve individual financial resilience.

Garanti BBVA continues to contribute to the Turkish national economy by providing exporters the expert guidance they need to break into new markets.

Each individual can play a part in the fight against climate change, to one degree or another. With small, daily gestures, it is possible to contribute to the conservation of the environment. Large corporations, through different debt instruments, bonds, and even specific transactions, also play a role in supporting this campaign, a campaign that concerns every corner of society. More specifically, what impact do businesses have on the environment, and what can they do to offset it?

Within the different types of sustainable loans, Revolving Credit Facilities (RCF), the already known financing product, have become increasingly popular in recent months. Today we know that this type of product can also be sustainable, but what exactly is a Revolving Credit Facility?

The markets have an endless supply of opportunities. Every investor’s dream is to know how to identify and take advantage of them. In order to do so,  real-time information on everything taking place in the stock market and access to the analyses of different experts is paramount. If you also have useful tools to design an investment strategy, multiply it at no additional cost, and manage the risks, it is much easier to make the right decision. All of this is possible with BBVA Trader, the trading platform for customers and non-customers.

BBVA served as sole sustainable agent in the first syndicated revolving credit facility in Latin America, signed with Fibra Uno, a strategic client for the bank. The transaction is also the first sustainable transaction by a real estate business in the region and the first facility to be arranged in accordance with the ‘Sustainability-Linked Loan Principles’ in Latin America. BBVA was also the joint bookrunner and lead arranger in the transaction, which involved a  total of 11 banks.

CIE Automotive wanted to benefit from BBVA’s experience and advice in its first sustainable financing with a commercial bank. The international industrial group formalized an €80 million bilateral sustainable loan with the bank.

Atlantic Copper, with the support of BBVA, has made its debut in the sustainable financing market by drawing up of two bilateral financing deals worth a combined total of €44 million. This activity confirms both companies’ strategic commitment to become aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Agenda 2030.

The agribusiness company COFCO International has signed the first syndicated sustainability-linked facility arranged by a  Chinese corporate with the help of BBVA. The financing is for a total of $2.1 billion comprising three tranches – a 1-year revolving credit facility (RCF), a 3-year RCF and a 3-year term loan – each tied to sustainability criteria.

The potential of open banking to change the face of financial service provision has been laid bare in a new deal between car-hailing giants Uber and digitally focused global bank BBVA.

BBVA and Uber, leaders in their respective markets in Mexico, announced their alliance, which sees BBVA launching an entirely new financial experience by making its services available in a third party platform for the benefit of Uber driver and delivery partners and their families.