More than 3,000 BBVA team members are seeing the benefits of SmartDollar, a free, holistic financial wellness program founded by finance guru Dave Ramsey, since the bank made it available to employees in 2017.

For another year, BBVA has been the chosen as the best company to work for in the Spanish banking sector, according to rankings released by the consulting firm, Universum. The bank has been singled out as an exceptional employer by both business students and IT students. The latter also judge the bank to be on the cutting-edge of digital transformation. Close to 31,500 Spanish students representing more than 60 universities were surveyed over the course of the study.

The Global Head of Talent and Culture at BBVA, Carlos Casas, stressed that in a rapidly changing environment like the one we are facing, where technology and demand patterns transform quickly, “talent management has to focus on training and guiding our employees so they can take advantage of the professional opportunities they are going to find at BBVA.” In this regard, he believes that “banks’ role is to become a key actor in the development and creation of opportunities.”

Ízaro Amilibia, discipline manager in BBVA Spain’s Talent and Culture Department, participated in a round table at an event addressing "Visible and Empowered Women in Business", organized by the Business Network for Diversity and LGBTI Inclusion (known by its Spanish initials, REDI). In the event that coincided with Lesbian Visibility Day, Amilibia stressed the importance of "breaking invisible obstacles" to ensure everyone is visible and embraced by the organization. As part of its commitment to diversity, and specifically to the LGTBI community, BBVA regularly collaborates with REDI.

Numerous activities were arranged at BBVA's headquarters in Madrid in celebration of World Book Day, observed internationally on April 23. The purpose was to underscore the important role literature, specifically books, plays in culture and education.

The BBVA Foundation has recognized the U.S. linguist with the Frontiers of Knowledge Award in the Humanities and Social Sciences Category, a new category included in this year’s edition for the first time ever. Chomsky’s research opened up new paths in multiple fields of humanities, especially in the study of the human mind and the cognitive systems that comprise it.

The BBVA Foundation has recognized composer John Adams with the BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in the Music and Opera category. The jury’s citation underscores Adam’s tremendous communication skills and his determination to engage with the public. Although the North-American maestro’s works span every genre, it is in opera that he has come fully into his own.

At an event organized by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Boston, BBVA’s Group executive chairman presented Openmind’s new book, 'Towards a New Enlightenment? A Transcendent Decade'. Carlos Torres Vila and two contributing authors, Joanna Bryson and Sandy Pentland, discussed the implications of big data and artificial intelligence in the current technological context and its role in the so-called fourth industrial revolution.

Andersen Lee, an aspiring, young chef from Montreal (Canada) has been named recipient of the scholarship that is jointly awarded by BBVA and The World's 50 Best Restaurants. Lee has been chosen from among the applicants from more than 70 countries. He will be able to perfect his culinary training working side by side with the prestigious chefs, Julien Royer, Clare Smyth, and Jorge Vallejo.

BBVA and Jordi Roca, pastry chef at El Celler de Can Roca, have together launched the project ‘El sentido del cacao’ (The Sense of Cocoa), an initiative that aims to raise awareness of the series of conditions affecting the sense of taste and which affect up to 17% of the world's population. This project comes in light of a pioneering investigation based on neuroscience and sensorial management supported by, among other institutions, the Hospital Clínico San Carlos in Madrid and IOB Institute of Oncology.