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BBVA Colombia

BBVA Colombia

The many manifestations of COVID-19 have made us susceptible to associating any of its wide-ranging symptoms to the virus and we forget that other conditions still exist and need to be tended to. More worrisome is the fact that globally, public health measures to control the pandemic, including mobility restrictions and prioritization of COVID-19 treatment, coupled with the economic crisis that is producing an increase in poverty, has made it even more challenging for low-income patients to access treatment in a timely manner. In Latin America, according to Pfizer, the number of medical consultations  and oncological visits nearly halved. Moreover, in the region, having medical coverage and access to basic health care is limited to very few people.

For yet another year, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has published the data reported by nearly 40 of the largest foundations in member countries of the Development Assistance Committee (DAC), to showcase the impact of private philanthropy. For second year running, the BBVA Microfinance Foundation (BBVAMF) ranks as the leading contributor to development in Latin America, and the world's second, next to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

45 minutes by motorcycle, half an hour by boat and 15 minutes on foot. That is how Sergio Pacheco and Victor Madera, loan officers of the BBVA Microfinance Foundation in Colombia, manage to bring financial services where no one else does. This journey is just one example among the numerous cases that can be found in the countries where the Foundation works. These are the lengths to which they go to reach those who live outside the financial system, which is another barrier to their progress. In 2020, BBVAMF has banked nearly 300,000 people in Colombia and Peru, and its two institutions combined have reached more than 2.1 million clients.

Carlos Torres Vila participated in an event sponsored by the BBVA Microfinance Foundation, entitled 'Unstoppable women: Challenges to and achievements of reinvention in times of crisis'. The event, chaired by Queen Letizia of Spain, shone the spotlight on the work of Latin American women entrepreneurs and technology’s key role in propping up their resilience against the economic impact of the pandemic. Development experts from organizations such as SEGIB (Ibero-American General Secretariat), the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), UN Women and representatives of technology companies such as Google also took part in the event.

The 9th of August is the day the United Nations honors the indigenous people for their efforts in protecting biodiversity and a millenium-old culture. They comprise 6% of the world’s population but their territory houses 80% of the planet’s biodiversity. Indigenous communities possess valuable knowledge on how to preserve the environment and care for natural resources. However, they face challenges that put their survival at risk, such as the lack of basic services like health -especially during the COVID-19 pandemic- or access to finance. Among other obstacles that hinder their progress is the lack of infrastructure, but the language barrier is also significant.

To know that they help improve people’s lives is what encourages Roberta, Fernanda, Omar, Yuriem and Teresa to face the day. As part of more than 4,000 microfinance officers of the BBVA Microfinance Foundation (BBVAMF) in five Latin American countries, they reach places where others don’t go, to make financial services more accessible to low-income entrepreneurs who need only an opportunity to develop their livelihoods.

2020 is a crucial year for women and girls, everywhere. We celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women and adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. It also marks the five-year milestone of the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals. This year’s 64th Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) was deemed to be the big commemoration and opportunity to reaffirm these mandates. There are still significant and pervasive gender gaps in the economic and political participation of women all over the world. Progress is sluggish and if we are serious about achieving the 2030 Agenda we must step up the pace.

The Paris-based Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has presented its report on private development financing. The study assessed more than 30 of the largest foundations in the OECD member countries and reveals that the BBVA Microfinance Foundation disbursed $1.2 billion in 2018. This represents 83 percent of the total of this kind of financing in Latin America, BBVAMF's sole operating region. BBVAMF thus places first in the region and second globally, after the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

They are both refugees. Einstein, considered one of the greatest geniuses in history, fled Nazi occupied Germany to the United States in 1933 after his civil liberties were revoked and he was barred from his professorship for being an outspoken opponent of the government. Fortunately, Princeton University recognized his intelligence and offered him a job. A fortuitous event that changed his life and ours, yet for many refugees today, such opportunities are scarce.

A finales del siglo XIX y durante el primer tercio del siglo XX, Sudamérica se convirtió en una prominente región de destino de la migración, principalmente de Europa, China y Japón. La depresión económica que vivía Occidente, las guerras europeas, y las reminiscencia de las antiguas metrópolis hicieron de los países sudamericanos el destino elegido por millones de personas que buscaban un futuro más próspero.

It isn’t easy to live in Soacha. Despite being close to Bogota, basic services like running water are not available on a daily basis and the streets of this town, one of the most impoverished in Colombia, are known for their insecurity and lack of infrastructure. But everything is possible with an opportunity and enthusiasm and Jessica Hernandez is the perfect example of this. BBVA’s Group executive chairman wanted to meet the entrepreneur whose story was heard around the world following her speech at the United Nations during a BBVA Microfinance Foundation event.

There are unsung heroes who travel miles, undaunted by distance or the obstacles they face on the road to reach their entrepreneurs: entrepreneurs who, whether standing behind a shop counter, sitting behind a sewing machine, or surrounded by their crops, make decisions everyday that impact their lives and the lives of their relatives and neighbors. If these entrepreneurs – more than two million today – are the heart of the BBVA Microfinance Foundation, then the more than 4,000 loan officers who accompany them on the road toward prosperity are its soul. There are many types of heroes in the world. Some, like these, were not born heroes. The were made into heroes.

BBVA’s Group Executive Chairman met with the Board of Trustees of the BBVA Microfinance Foundation (BBVAMF) following the appointment of Anna Escobedo Cabral, expert in development and a leading voice in the defense of the most disadvantaged regions, as the Board’s new Chair. Francisco González praised Claudio González Vega’s work, who will step down as chair of the institution but will continue to contribute his broad experience in microfinance as member of the Board.

Pastry chef Jordi Roca introduced his new book 'Casa Cacao' ('Cocoa House'), a cookbook full of creations where chocolate plays the leading role. Co-authored with food journalist Ignacio Medina, this cookbook is also an encyclopedic dedication to cocoa and follows both men on their journey through various parts of Latin America in search of the best chocolate in the world. The launch of the book in Madrid included participation from Oscar Moya, BBVA’s Director of Global Sponsorships and Corporate Content, and Lydia Diaz, Director of Planeta Gastro, a Spanish publishing house specializing in gastronomy. This book is a prelude to a gastronomic venue that Jordi Roca will open next year in Girona, in northeastern Spain. BBVA will produce a documentary to accompany the kick-off of the new venue.

Not long ago, in Colombia, nearly half the population lived in poverty. In rural areas, the overwhelming majority. Ten years ago, the BBVA Microfinance Foundation made a commitment to change this reality by creating the country’s first microfinance bank, Bancamía, in collaboration with two non-governmental organizations (NGOs) – 'Corporación Mundial de la Mujer Colombia' and 'Corporación Mundial de la Mujer Medellín'.

For Sandra Mendoza, the Colombian entrepreneur served by the BBVA Microfinance Foundation, there is no question: “Sexism is the biggest barrier to overcome in rural areas.” This is also how she describes what it’s like to be a woman living in the countryside. At an event held in honor of the International Day of Rural Women, both she and Manuela Gómez, a Spanish entrepreneur from the Federation of Rural Women Associations (FADEMUR), spoke of a reality they know firsthand, despite the 5,000 miles that separate them.

The best way to close a distance is to eliminate it. This is what is required if distance is what prevents one in every four financially excluded people from opening a bank account. The World Bank indicates that technology may play a key role in making financial inclusion a viable reality for everyone, which is why digital transformation is part of BBVA Microfinance Foundation's DNA. The Foundation aims to reach more people, regardless of how far away they live, and to provide assistance as efficiently and quickly as possible.

BBVA CEO Carlos Torres Vila got a first-hand glimpse into the level of progress that the BBVA Microfinance Foundation's digital strategy is enabling. Bancamía, the Foundation’s lending arm in the country, is managing to reach more and more customers who, until recently, had struggled to access financing as a result of the digital divide. BBVA’s CEO learned about two of the entrepreneurs backed by the institution and how microcredits have afforded them new opportunities to pursue a brighter future.

BBVA continued leading the way to innovation in Latin America during 2017, becoming the region’s digital bank par excellence. That distinction was confirmed by Global Finance magazine, which judged BBVA’s mobile banking app to be the best in Latin America. BBVA’s local franchises in the region have set the pace in the development of products and services which, just as in the case of mobile banking, aim to make their customers’ lives easier and deliver on the Group’s intent to bring the age of opportunity to everyone.

Argentina, Peru, Colombia and Chile are examples of BBVA’s commitment to digitization and to offering the most advanced services for customers in the all markets where the bank operates. Chatbots, online investment funds and corporate leasing functions are all evidence of the bank’s progress in Latin America.

The Pacific Alliance, made up of Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru, is a regional economic and comercial powerhouse.  This area grows more than the average in Latin America. BBVA Research expects GDP growth of 1.6% and 2.3% in 2017 and 2018, respectively.  "The Pacific Alliance is a success story in integration.  And not by chance.  It shares an ambition and a set of values behind this policy, on how prosperity should be reached," said Jose Manuel González-Páramo, executive director of BBVA in Santander.

BBVA launches the sixth edition of its social entrepreneurship support program, which from now on will be global – it will be developed in Spain, the United States, Mexico, Turkey and Colombia –, will offer support to more companies and will adjust better to the reality of social entrepreneurs. BBVA Momentum channels its support through five initiatives: a training program; a strategic mentoring program; a network of entrepreneurs, customers and investors; collaboration to provide visibility to the companies; and, finally, funding.

Thirty years ago, microfinance revolutionized the market with affordable loans for the disadvantaged. Until then, the most vulnerable population segments were left out on the fringes of the financial system, and had no way of accessing credit. Today, with 2 billion adults still unbanked, new technologies are emerging with the potential to reach more people at a lower cost. But this opportunity is having a challenging impact on the current microfinance model, which was built on the pillars of personal relations and trust.

Creating Opportunities is the BBVA Group’s new tagline. After a decade, ‘Adelante’ is giving way to a new tagline that fits with the bank’s new purpose: To bring the age of opportunity to everyone. In this interview, Carlos Ricardo, the BBVA Group’s Marketing Director and Brand Director Carlos Pérez Beruete explain the process that led to the new tagline. It will also be accompanied by a new image, identity, sound and value proposition. “2017 will be the year that consumers clearly see how the bank has been transforming in recent years,” they say.

BBVA has a new tagline: Creating Opportunities. The bank will start using it in February and it will be progressively introduced in all countries, all communications to customers and all of BBVA’s printed and digital materials. BBVA’s new tagline sums up the bank’s purpose, launched a few months ago: “To bring the age of opportunity to everyone”

Soacha in Colombia receives 20-60 new families a week that are fleeing from the armed conflict that torments the country. In this context, the support of Bancamía (the entity of BBVA Microfinance Foundation in Colombia) to small entrepreneurs plays a key role in the area’s economic development. Francisco González, Chairman and CEO of BBVA, visited three of these small businesses and saw their work first hand.