The number of companies and investors betting on blockchain continues to grow. But how did it come about? What was needed to develop bitcoin, its first practical application? And who were the pioneers of blockchain?

It was a record-breaking week for BBVA Spain, particularly in digital records. From Nov. 20 through Nov. 27, the period including "Black Friday” and “Cyber Monday,” the number of consumer loans contracted at BBVA Spain reached unprecedented levels, with 54% coming through digital channels.

The most impressive thing at this year’s Blockchain Summit in London was the enthusiasm and wide array of use cases for blockchain on show. Starting with its origins of digital currency and current evolution to ICOs (the abbreviation for initial coin offering) to applications in the energy and real estate sectors, there is seemingly no problem too big that it can’t be solved via blockchain technology.

The European Commission has published regulatory technical standards (RTS) that are part of the Payment Services Directive, or PSD2. The standards ensure greater security when paying for goods and services in Europe, as well as for third party access to bank customers’ data.

Exhibitionism is one of the defining traits of today’s society. We have access to every imaginable way to take pictures, store them, upload them, share them and comment on them.

BBVA, in collaboration with Wave, conducted the first pilot that uses blockchain to automate the electronic submission of documents in an import-export transaction between Europe and Latin America.  Thanks to Wave’s solution, which uses Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) and blockchain, BBVA was able to reduce the time required to send, verify and authorize an international trade transaction, which normally takes from seven to ten days, to just 2.5 hours.

The APIfication phenomenon is by no means restricted to the banking sector. At the API Forum held this week in Madrid, insurance and entertainment companies participated, together with BBVA, to discuss the keys to designing APIs capable of attracting developers.

Near Field Communication (NFC) technology enables wireless communication between two electronic devices that are close to each other. This form of data exchange is not new – it first began to be used in 2002, although it wasn’t until 2016 and 2017 that many brands, banks and organizations included it in their business models. This has led to major advances in contactless and mobile payment methods, based on this technology.

This isn’t an article about magic or a secret trick for using cell phones. It’s simply about using the voice assistants that any mobile device contains: Siri for Apple and the popular “OK Google” for Android. Both allow users to send messages while leaving the smartphone on the table, untouched.

The “Powerlist” celebrates the contributions and talent of women from different business areas who are shaping the future of the fintech sector.  This year, the list includes four women from BBVA who play a significant role in the bank’s strategy.