Enterprises

“Since the global financial crisis, Spanish non-financial corporates and households have cut their leverage by more than the European average,” said BBVA’s Global Head of Commercial & Institutional Client Solutions, Jaime Sáenz de Tejada. In his opinion, this has given the banking sector in Spain “robust growth margins and a highly resilient model.” At an event organized by AEB and CECA in Frankfurt on Tuesday, Sáenz de Tejada pointed to “diversification as one of the keys to the success of Spanish banking.”

BBVA, in a further show of its commitment to offering innovative payment solutions, has launched a new virtual card product in Mexico alongside Mastercard (NYSE: MA) and Sabre Direct Pay, Sabre Corporation’s (NASDAQ: SABR) virtual payment solution. This innovative offering in Mexico enables travel agencies to issue secure virtual card numbers (VCNs) for each payment. This improves control, integrates with backend reconciliation tools, and significantly reduces manual work and errors.

BBVA and SAP Spain have forged a strategic alliance whereby the bank will integrate the SAP Multibank Connectivity solution to enhance its corporate banking service offering and attract new business clients. The solution will enable BBVA to transform and optimize how financial transactions are carried out for corporate and business banking clients, making the whole process more efficient and agile.

Jaime Sáenz de Tejada, Global Head of Commercial & Institutional Client Solutions, stated that “one in four companies in Spain chose BBVA in 2024, a figure that is even more impressive in Catalonia, where one in three companies chose BBVA.”

For the third year running, BBVA has been busy promoting training in sustainability for 466 of its SME suppliers in 13 countries where it operates, showing an 11 percent improvement on the 2024 figure (418 companies). In total, 593 people will take part in the Sustainable Suppliers Training Program of the UN Global Compact (up 7 percent on the 552 in 2024).

Around 40 percent of BBVA’s business customers in Spain have upgraded to the Android PoS terminal, which offers more functionalities than a traditional device. Its operation is intuitive and resembles that of a mobile phone. The main screen displays applications for business management and a payment option. Merchants can easily process returns and view their transaction history.

BBVA Spark is the financial ally of high-impact companies and the partner of reference for the entire ecosystem of entrepreneurs. This unit, already present in Mexico, Spain and Colombia, will expand to the rest of the South American countries.

On this portal, import export companies can access the wide range of solutions that BBVA offers them, such as the international commerce sections from the different local BBVA websites around the world, which help them to streamline these operations. Global Trade Finance also gives the companies access to specialized information that supports them in their international transactions, such as customs paperwork or tenders, with updated data from more than 170 countries.

BBVA supported Spanish companies with €28.1 billion earmarked for their global expansion in 2022, 27 percent more than in the previous year. Growth was driven by both finance and guarantee products and services for expansion into foreign markets, alongside solutions to mitigate the risks involved in international business. The bank also offers digital tools and support services that help companies in their day-to-day international operations, thereby aiding their growth in overseas markets.

BBVA is giving a boost to its Pivot Commercial Cards platform by adding support for  Mastercard cards expense management. This platform allows greater control over the use of corporate cards by simplifying the review and authorisation processes for expenses. It already manages daily purchases for more than 85,000 employees of client companies using BBVA's corporate cards across eight countries.

BBVA recently presented BBVA Spark, its full financial services proposition for innovative, high growth companies in their different stages of growth. Spark provides these companies with all their financial needs within the same place, and gives them access to sophisticated financing products, such as venture debt and growth loans. To do so, BBVA Spark will offer them a unique relationship management model with a team of experts who speak their language.

BBVA has been named the world´s best bank for corporate clients for the second time by Global Finance magazine in its annual awards. Awards that have become a trusted standard of excellence for the financial industry.

The European Investment Bank (EIB) and BBVA have further strengthened their relationship and signed an agreement to support large Spanish companies and mid-caps affected by the economic crisis caused by the pandemic. To this end, the EIB will grant a guarantee of up to €400 million to BBVA, enabling the Spanish bank to mobilise more than €1.015 billion in the real economy via loans.

BBVA experts recommend that SMEs should digitize, become more technified, and increase their training to adapt to the new times in order to get onboard the sustainability train and make progress in their recovery.

With a view to helping companies, SMEs and the self-employed obtain fast and simple access to public aid, in particular those associated with the Next Generation EU funds, BBVA has reached an agreement with Minsait, an Indra company, to develop a service that helps to identify and manage the subsidies its customers can apply for in Spain. Customers interested in applying must simply inform their BBVA manager of the type of initiative they are looking to start and Minsait will provide them with details of the possible solution, completely online in the coming months, which will simply the process for handling and monitoring their request.

BBVA voluntarily adhered to the Code of Good Practices approved by the Government on May 11 for customers benefiting from government-backed financing as of March 17, 2020. BBVA is firmly committed to companies and the self-employed, as it has shown during the crisis. By adhering to the Code, BBVA reinforces its commitment to this segment, one of the country's key economic drivers.

While society continues to adapt to the new reality post the pandemic´s outbreak, the workplace has begun to glimpse the guidelines that will mark our new ways of working. Confinement and movement restrictions have made teleworking a valid solution in many sectors and its managers are now studying how to extract the lessons learned and incorporate them into hybrid work models. It's something that will bring on the need to adapt to different work roles, work dynamics and new ways of leading.

Greenwich Associates announced today its Greenwich Excellence Awards, a series of honors that recognizes top 2020 performers in the banking industry in a variety of topics, highlighting BBVA USA in a plethora of categories.

In a hat trick, BBVA USA has been named the Best Treasury & Cash Management Provider in the Southwest Region by Global Finance magazine for the third time in a row.

Greenwich Associates has once again recognized BBVA USA, this time commending its customer experience in two major banking categories in its 2020 Greenwich CX Leaders list announced last week. 

BBVA strengthens its solutions for small and medium sized enterprises across its footprint, thanks to a strategy that prioritizes the relationship model, product distribution and the use of technology as a competitive advantage. BBVA was recently recognized as the best global bank for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) at the 2020 SME Finance Forum Awards.

BBVA's Turkish unit has launched the latest round of its Garanti BBVA Partners Acceleration Program, an initiative that seeks to nurture the entrepreneurial spirit and support local small business people.

Following a selection process that began last November and involved large international firms in advertising communication, BBVA has awarded tenders for media management and the digital ecosystem to WPP Group and Accenture Interactive, respectively.

BBVA Momentum winner Laura Hertz, founder of Gifts for Good, continues to do well by doing good. The social entrepreneur was recognized by Forbes magazine in its list of 30 Under 30 Social Entrepreneurs for 2020. 

Oscar Vélez de Mendizábal (Victoria, 1972), is the head of BBVA Spain's business transformation factory. He’s previously held different positions in the business, institution and corporate areas of the Southern Territorial Division.

Denver-based Vita Inclinata Technologies has been named the overall winner of BBVA’s Entrepreneurial Opportunity Contest, winning the $50,000 grand prize over other geographic winners from previous regional rounds. The company is focused on delivering the first agnostic, autonomous suspended load stability system for both earth and space applications.

BBVA Group executive chairman Carlos Torres Vila, CEO Onur Genç, and the Country Manager of BBVA Spain, Cristina de Parias met on Friday with the bank’s management team in Catalonia to discuss the challenges and opportunities this territory offers. More than 60 percent of Catalan companies are BBVA clients. The bank will continue putting the focus on connecting with its clients and customers.

This type of cyberattack –targeted at companies' employees – has been increasing steadily during the last year. The ‘CEO fraud’ can affect any type of company, from small family businesses to large multinationals and it is essential to understand how it works in order protect companies from it.

The Houston Dynamo and BBVA USA have announced MoodMe as the winner of its annual Launchpad Sweepstakes contest, giving the Houston-area startup $10,000 to enhance its operation.