API, SaaS, KYC… Reading an article about fintech firms can seem like an impossible task – something only possible for experts from the industry. But these acronyms and initials are hiding concepts that are actually quite simple, and becoming familiar with them is essential to understanding the fintech revolution. Here are ten key terms that are very common in the sector.

One of the keys to success for an API platform is that it needs to be an independent business, set up to encourage financial innovation, according to Shamir Karkal, BBVA’s Head of Open APIs.

BBVA Compass’ idea to improve access to banking has been introduced in the House of Representatives in the form of HR 6287, also known as the MOBILE Act.

Atom Bank, the UK's first bank built exclusively for mobile and in which BBVA has a 29.5% stake,  launched residential mortgages - its first consumer lending product - which allows customers to manage the process from offer to completion through the Atom app - the only UK mortgage provider to do this.

“Strategic alliances with fintech players” was one of the points highlighted by Carlos Torres Villa, COO of BBVA, at Money 20/20 Europe, the event of reference for the fintech sector, which held its first European edition in Copenhagen. At the meeting in Denmark, Torres Villa insisted that "BBVA will have an increasingly more important role in the innovation ecosystem thanks to our internal initiatives, our strategic alliances with fintech players and the use of our platform to build open APIs as a lever for growth".

The newspaper Expansión has given prominence to BBVA's open innovation strategy in the second edition of the awards for the "50 best digital ideas". The intention of these awards is to recognize the efforts of Spanish companies and institutions to adapt their processes and services to the new digital economy.

BBVA Compass’ digital efforts got a double vote of confidence today from independent research firm Javelin Strategy & Research, which gave the bank’s online platform top nods alongside five other banks for Financial Management and Money Movement capabilities in its inaugural Online Banking Scorecard.

BBVA is one of the 10 members of the consortium for financial innovation R3, which have worked together to develop a proof-of-concept (PoC) for a shared KYC (Know Your Customer) system using distributed ledger technology.

"If you can't beat them, join them," could well be the mantra for the world's central bankers. Having watched as bitcoin went from obscure experiment in digital money to a currency with a market value of almost $10bn, they themselves are now experimenting with digital currencies rather than waiting idly to be swept away by the tide of technology.

BBVA has announced the execution of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Salesforce, the world’s #1 CRM company, to strengthen its Customer Relationship Management (CRM) strategy using Salesforce’s cloud computing services. The agreement is part of a series of projects that BBVA is forging with strategic partners to be a more flexible and scalable digital bank. Salesforce Vice Chairman, President & COO Keith Block and BBVA CEO Carlos Torres Vila closed the MoU during a ceremony in San Francisco.