As part of BBVA’s Community Investment Plan, BBVA has allocated €9.8 million to entrepreneurship initiatives, benefiting 2.2 million people in 2019. It is therefore fulfilling its commitment to entrepreneurship as the driver of opportunities for people, creating a positive impact on their lives in all countries where BBVA has a presence.

Queen Letizia joined the BBVA Microfinance Foundation (BBVAMF) on a videoconference to discuss how COVID-19 is impacting Latin American micro-enterprises and to learn about the measures the foundation has put in place via its entities in the five countries it operates (Colombia, Peru, the Dominican Republic, Chile, and Panama).

BBVA has joined the manifiesto ‘Green Recovery. Reboot and reboost our economies for a sustainable future’, promoted by the Chair of the European Parliament Committee on the Environment, Pascal Canfin. This alliance defends a sustainable recovery from the coronavirus crisis, and is comprised of politicians, businesses, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and unions, among others. "In order to tackle the challenge of a quick recovery, we should start with a more sustainable development model,” said BBVA Group executive chairman Carlos Torres Vila.

“Recovery from the COVID-19 crisis should be green, inclusive, and resilient. The recovery is not at odds with sustainability; in fact, they should be aligned,” Antoni Ballabriga, BBVA's Global Head of Responsible Business explained at a virtual meeting organized by Finnovating. José Manuel Marques, Head of the Financial Innovation Division at the Banco de España also participated in the forum.

Maintaining financial health once the lockdown is over will be important for our savings goals and for having a financial cushion that makes it possible to handle any emergency, thus ensuring peace of mind with respect to financial matters. That’s why it’s a good idea to continue some of the habits that have become widespread during the lockdown, habits that have proven effective for saving money.

Donations from BBVA employees around the world to fight coronavirus have reached one million euros. As part of its campaign ‘Your contribution is worth double’, BBVA has matched the amount donated by each employee, for a total of two million euros. The donation will be used to purchase healthcare materials, to support vulnerable communities across the bank’s footprint, and to research a cure for the disease. At the outset of the crisis, BBVA announced that it would contribute 35 million euros to fight the pandemic. This figure includes the bank’s one million euro contribution to the campaign in solidarity against COVID-19.

As part of Turkey’s national solidarity campaign, BBVA’s franchise will donate 200 ventilators to the Turkish Ministry of Health.

Climate emergency is one of the greatest challenges facing humanity. Besides transport, the agro-livestock or heavy industry sectors are major contributors to greenhouse gas emissions. Our digital activity, linked to our traceable digital footprint, also contributes to our carbon footprint.

Reducing inequality, one of the key points in the UN’s SDG agenda (SDG stands for Sustainable Development Goals), has become an even more pressing issue in the midst of the coronavirus crisis, which is deepening existing social divides across the globe. María José Roa, researcher, teacher, member of the INFE/OECD Research Committee and winner of the BBVA EduFin Grants 2019, analyzes the root causes and the impact of these inequalities and the role of financial education to reduce them in Latin America.