BBVA has received the green light from the Spanish Securities and Exchange Commission (CNMV) to provide custody and execution services for cryptoassets trading orders in Spain. After completing this formality, the bank is preparing to launch its offering for its retail customers, which will initially be available with bitcoin and ether.

The technological innovations underlying cryptocurrencies, such as cryptography and distributed ledger technology (DLT), can also be applied to traditional assets like financial instruments or fiat currencies. Tokenization enables the "digitization" of these assets, representing them as tokens and granting them properties with significant potential to enhance and improve the financial system.

Garanti BBVA Crypto Asset Trading Platform, part of the Garanti BBVA Group, recently announced that Korcan Abalı will be stepping down as CEO and Onur Güven will replace him. Güven has been a senior manager at a variety of renowned financial technology companies.

Since it took its first steps in Switzerland 50 years ago, BBVA’s Swiss subsidiary has managed to build an outstanding international private banking franchise. Thanks to its client-centric business model and relying heavily on technology as a key driver of financial transformation, the bank continues to lead an industry increasingly dominated by innovation and digital assets.

Garanti BBVA Kripto aims to provide the highest standards in terms of performance, security, and customer trust  for digital assets. It does so by establishing strategic partnerships with Ripple for the services provided by  its subsidiary; and with IBM for secure custody solutions for its crypto asset trading platform, which serves more than 14,000 users.

BBVA is one of the first banks in Visa's global network to use VTAP, a new Visa platform that enables financial institutions to create and manage digital tokens backed by fiat currencies such as the euro and the dollar. BBVA will use VTAP to create tokens on the public Ethereum blockchain with expected live pilots in 2025.

BBVA announces its participation in Project Agorá. This project, launched by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), a group of leading central banks, and the Institute of International Finance (IIF), will proceed to the next phase with more than forty private sector financial firms in their exploration of how tokenization can enhance wholesale cross-border payments.

The bank is expanding its cryptocurrency custody and trading services to include USD Coin (USDC), a leading stablecoin whose value is pegged to the US dollar. This addition will enable BBVA’s institutional clients to speed up their trading operations by enabling them to transfer value more efficiently with blockchain and secure their stablecoins into BBVA’s vault.

Garanti BBVA’s mobile platform for cryptocurrencies now offers Avalanche c-chain support for AVAX coins, an asset in high demand in Türkiye.

BBVA Switzerland has signed an agreement to collaborate with the blockchain company Metaco to host its digital asset custody service, a trailblazer in Europe, on the  Harmonize™ platform. With this agreement, the bank is embarking on a new stage in its crypto strategy, characterized by the highest standards in security and greater agility in transactions. In addition, it opens the door to BBVA expanding its range of services in the future in order to meet the needs of its institutional clients.

NFTs are unique and verifiable representations of digital assets, such as works of art, music, videos, virtual collectibles and other types of digital content, based on blockchain technology to guarantee their authenticity and ownership. Over 64 percent of those who purchase NFTs do so for profitability, while 12 percent are simply collectors.

Garanti BBVA, a leading force in digitization in the Turkish banking industry, has announced the launching of Garanti BBVA Digital Assets,  the first venture of its subsidiary Garanti BBVA Financial Technologies. With a pilot already in progress, the company will initially provide services for transfer and custody of bitcoin and ether in the cryptoassets market.

The CEO of BBVA in Switzerland has participated in the fifth edition of the Crypto Valley conference, the most emblematic event of the Crypto Valley Association (CVA), where he has emphasized the role of banking for blockchain developments alongside other leading experts in the industry.

It goes without saying that Europe has lagged behind other world powers in many of the technological races of recent decades: from the design of smartphones and the operating systems that control them to the development of artificial intelligence applications, e-commerce platforms or social networks, among other areas of competition. But there is a new race, still in its early stages, in which Europe seems determined not to be left behind: the issuance of CBDCs (central bank digital currencies), which are intended to be an electronic version of cash now that banknotes and coins are in clear decline as a means of payment.

The concept of digital identity -the personal data we voluntarily or involuntarily share online- is a cornerstone of cyberspace. Defining digital identity, regulating it and empowering the user is the next challenge we face.

The bank has signed a collaboration agreement with the Legendaryum Metaverse to explore how immersive digital environments could change the remote relationship model both between internal areas and with customers. BBVA has opened a remote meeting room in Legendaryum to analyze the potential of these spaces and how they change the way users relate to each other and help in the design of specific banking services.

The benefits of blockchain technology and tokens, popularly associated with cryptocurrencies, go well beyond the fintech world. The traceability, security, speed and transparency of blockchain, in addition to its relatively lower cost, mean that this technology offers valuable benefits in many aspects of daily life, such as streamlining bureaucratic procedures, monitoring daily habits or giving people tighter control of their digital identity. The report ‘Tokenise Europe 2025,’ in which BBVA took part, discusses the benefits of 'tokenizing' the European economy.

BBVA joins Banca March, Banco Santander, CaixaBank, Generali, Inetum, Línea Directa Aseguradora, MAPFRE, Repsol, Unicaja Banco and Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, the entities that launched Dalion in 2020. The project works on an innovative digital identity management model based on blockchain, which allows each person full control of their data.

The boom in cryptocurrencies, particularly in regions like Latin America, has lead numerous governments to create legislation to take advantage of the benefits and mitigate the risks. And they are not the only new alternative to cash - several central banks, including the European Central Bank, are looking into the possibility of issuing their own digital currencies. During a BBVA Open Talks event, the speakers debated how these changes will define the future of money.

BBVA’s Swiss franchise has expanded its cryptocurrency custody and trading service, which now allows for ether operations. This cryptocurrency developed by Ethereum is the second most used cryptocurrency after bitcoin, and completes BBVA Switzerland’s pioneering offer.

Bitcoin and ether are the best known cryptocurrencies, but there are thousands on the market with different purposes and functions. Cardano, binance coin or USD coin are some of those that are gaining more and more relevance.

Decentralized finance is a blockchain-based set of applications that, in principle, need no intermediaries to work. These financial products have similar characteristics to traditional services and their boom period could, to some extent, change the financial sector and give rise to both opportunities and challenges.

After six months of testing with a selected group of users, BBVA Switzerland makes its first crypto-asset trading and custody service available to all its private banking clients.

BBVA and Ant Group (Alibaba affiliate) have signed an agreement to collaborate on the integration of financial services in their platform, Trusple. Based on blockchain technology, this network is aimed to accelerate the digital transformation and facilitate the financing of international trade operations, with a special focus on small and mid-sized businesses.

Central bank-backed digital currencies, such as the potential digital euro and digital yuan, may become a reality in the coming years. Unlike cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, these currencies promise less volatility and greater security. In addition, they will have the support of their respective monetary institutions, responsible for ensuring financial stability.

The tokenisation of assets via blockchain could facilitate new financing pathways, guarantee secure investments and programme digital money so that it can only be used for certain purposes, although the associated regulations have not yet materialised.