BBVA has secured 3rd place among the best banks in Italy in the 2026 edition of the 'World’s Best Banks' list published by Forbes. This result marks an improvement over last year, when the bank ranked at the fifth place, and further strengthens its position among the leading financial institutions in the country.

In recent years, Europe has been busy developing one of the world’s most ambitious digital regulatory frameworks, covering matters such as data protection and sharing, artificial intelligence (AI), and operational resilience. The result is a robust framework, but also one that is complex and, at times, fragmented. However, since 2023—with the rise in popularity of tools such as ChatGPT—and amid heightened geopolitical tensions, there has been mounting criticism of an approach that is sometimes seen as overly regulatory and as one of the causes of the EU’s technological gap relative to other regions.

The BBVA Bot Talent competition, through which the bank promotes AI adoption across the organization, received 315 proposals from over 1,200 employees in its second edition. The six finalists presented solutions ranging from risk analysis and customer extortion detection to the translation of financial content into indigenous languages and meeting optimization. The winning project, PresentAltor, automates corporate content creation in seconds, helping to reduce manual tasks and enhance team efficiency.

Garanti BBVA has launched a new banking service model for technology startups operating in technoparks, combining tailored financial solutions with specialized advisory support.

Garanti BBVA has expanded its export financing solutions by making its Turkish lira (TRY) Export Loan accessible through digital channels. Clients can now draw on their existing limits without visiting a branch and meet their financing needs quickly and easily, with financing terms of up to 24 months.

The energy transition, digitalisation, sector consolidation and the rollout of new infrastructure are reshaping investment decisions in Europe. In Spain, BBVA CIB has delivered two consecutive years of double-digit growth and has supported transactions and investments of close to €20 billion. José Ramón Vizmanos, Head of BBVA CIB in Spain, explains why this new phase requires more capital, greater financial sophistication and a long-term strategic vision.

The BBVA Foundation presented its Frontiers of Knowledge Award in the Climate Change and Environmental Sciences category to Carl Wunsch (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) for his foundational contributions to studies that revealed the impact of global warming on the world’s oceans. The awardee researcher “had the early insight that the ocean plays a central role in regulating Earth’s climate,” the committee noted.

Garanti BBVA recently announced the expansion of its YouTube video series, ‘Talking Investment’ with new content. Designed to make the investment world accessible to everyone, the series simplifies technical topics to boost financial literacy and support customers in their financial decision-making.

Garanti BBVA has reached an agreement with Raiffeisen Bank S.A. – the Romanian unit of the Austrian bank Raiffeisen Bank International AG’s (RBI) – to sell 100 percent of its franchise in Romania for €591 million.

Citizens, companies, city councils and institutions from all over the world will turn off the lights this Saturday, March 28 for Earth Hour to fight against climate change and the loss of biodiversity. BBVA participates for yet another year in this initiative organized by the World Wildlife Fund, turning off a hundred headquarters, corporate buildings and branches spread throughout all the countries where the bank is present.

Giulia Enders is a German doctor and author who is well known for explaining how the gut works and how it affects our overall health. She helps people understand topics like digestion, gut bacteria, and the connection between the gut and the brain.

Water is one of the four key areas in BBVA’s natural capital management. For the first time, the bank has published a comprehensive calculation of its water footprint. This measurement is based on 2024 data, showing a total water footprint for the Group of 8.6 million m3 equivalent, derived from direct and indirect activities and its environmental impact.

Garanti BBVA was honored at the 2026 Euromoney Private Banking Awards as Türkiye’s Best International Private Bank. This prestigious award from one of the world’s leading financial publications recognizes the bank’s excellence in private banking and wealth management.

Responsible AI is not only a matter of rules or governance. It is also a technical challenge. That was one of the main messages from Clara Higuera, BBVA’s Responsible AI Lead, at QCon London, a leading international conference for engineers, software architects, and technology leaders. Her talk focused on how to turn concepts such as fairness, transparency, and security into methods, metrics, and controls that can be applied throughout the AI development lifecycle.

BBVA held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) this Friday in Bilbao, where Chair Carlos Torres Vila underscored that the bank is “better prepared for the future than ever,” despite an uncertain and changing environment, marked by trade and geopolitical tensions. “At BBVA, we are facing this context with confidence to continue growing, supported by our geographical diversification, our unique combination of growth and profitability and a strategy clearly focused on innovation,” he added. Furthermore, he underlined that BBVA has leading franchises in its core markets, disciplined execution and the best team. “Looking to 2026 we expect to outperform our competitors while increasing profitability to levels of around 20 percent. We were pioneers in the digital transformation, with tremendous success, and once again, we are going to lead banking in the age of artificial intelligence,” the BBVA Chair said.

BBVA is set to resume on March 23 the execution of the extraordinary share buyback program of up to €3.96 billion that it announced on December 19¹. Following the completion of a first tranche of €1.5 billion, it will now begin executing the second tranche for an amount of up to €1 billion.

BBVA has played a key role as Coordinator Lead Arranger and Hedging Coordinator in the financing of Cape Phase I, developed by Fervo Energy, a pioneering project that marks a milestone in the commercial-scale deployment of next-generation geothermal energy in the United States. The transaction highlights BBVA’s capabilities in the energy sector and reinforces its strong and growing presence as one of the leading project finance institutions in the U.S. market.

Garanti BBVA is now offering its appraisal and mortgage services on digital channels for both sole traders and corporate clients. The move comes as part of the bank’s efforts to improve the speed, convenience and flexibility of credit.

The BBVA Foundation has awarded its Frontiers of Knowledge Award in Music and Opera to Unsuk Chin. The South Korean artist, who taught herself to play the piano and compose, has developed a “singular technique of great solidity” defined “by her refined command of sound and masterful ability to transform it into a play of illusions and metamorphoses, marking her out as one of the great innovators in contemporary music,” the award committee noted.

The bank ranks seventh by volume and eighth by number of project finance transactions in the UK, according to Refinitiv. The UK, one of the most dynamic and competitive markets in Europe, remains a strategic priority for BBVA CIB, which mobilised £1.36 billion in 2025 to finance key projects in the energy transition, clean technologies and essential infrastructure.

BBVA Research states that higher oil prices alone do not necessarily accelerate energy transitions. In a recent report, it argues that geopolitical crises drive energy diversification only when viable technological alternatives are available. The study highlights how perceived supply risk, technological readiness, and public policy shape the energy system.

Garanti BBVA recently launched ‘My Family,’ a new section on its Garanti BBVA Mobile app that lets parents manage their children’s finances on a single screen. This all-in-one solution features expense-tracking, educational content and financial products, such as checking accounts, savings accounts, Türkiye’s Individual Pension System (BES) and cards.

Garanti BBVA has completely overhauled BonusFlaş. With a modern interface, faster NFC Mobile Contactless and QR payment flows, enhanced card management, personalized offers and digital wallet features, BonusFlaş brings wallet, rewards, payments and cards together in a single platform.

BBVA has appointed David Conde as Country Manager of BBVA Switzerland. Conde joined the bank 30 years ago and until now was Director of the Retail and High-Value Client Segments at BBVA Spain. This appointment is subject to the corresponding regulatory approvals.

When the shareholders of a corporation hold an Annual General Meeting (AGM), they become constituted as one of the main governing bodies of that company. At the AGM, the shareholders make decisions on the matters placed under their exclusive authority by law in the jurisdiction where the company is established, or by the company’s own internal rules, known as "bylaws." BBVA will hold this year's AGM on March 20, 2028, in Bilbao, Spain.

Visa Desarrollos, headquartered in San Pedro Garza García, Nuevo León, completed the refinancing of its flagship project, Punto Valle. The transaction was structured for a total amount of MXN 2.2 billion with a five-year tenor. This mixed-use development is considered the largest and most prominent “Town Center” in northern Mexico.