Carlos Soria
Carlos Soria
Garanti BBVA’s AI journey, launched in 2016, has evolved into Ugi, which today handles more than 6.4 million monthly interactions on average, has 1.6 million active users, and supports more than 300 end-to-end banking transactions. With the integration of generative AI, Ugi can now understand 90% of user requests. Over the past year, nearly 50% of mobile banking customers interacted with Ugi at least once, while the system delivered proactive solutions through 780,000 instant notifications per month.
Winners in five categories were announced at a gala ceremony on April 28, with Gurvita founder Bahar Şamhili Tanju named Woman Entrepreneur of Türkiye. The competition, organized by Garanti BBVA in partnership with Ekonomist magazine and KAGİDER, has received more than 50,000 applications since its launch in 2007.
BBVA has received The Banker’s award for Best Technology Bank in Western Europe, along with Best Bank-Fintech Partnership for its strategic agreement with OpenAI. These accolades from the Financial Times Group publication are a testament to the progress made in its artificial intelligence (AI) strategy, the launch of its new app, and its digital model for entering new markets such as Germany.
BBVA is strengthening its commitment to growth in Germany with the appointment of Jürgen von der Lehr as Head of its Digital Bank in the country, a key role in adapting the bank’s value proposition in one of Europe’s largest and most competitive financial markets.
BBVA Channels €36 Billion into Sustainable Business in the First Quarter of 2026 (up 33 Percent YoY)
BBVA channeled €36 billion into sustainable business in the first quarter of 2026, an increase of 33 percent over the same period in the previous year. Of this amount, €12.6 billion came from Spain. This activity allows the bank’s clients to gain access to financing and solutions for the energy transition, efficient resource use and social challenges. With this achievement, the bank has reached a total of €170 billion toward its €700 billion target for the 2025 – 2029 period.
BBVA Mexico and Fibra Macquarie have entered into an agreement for a US$200 million green financing facility aimed at funding the development of industrial properties certified under LEED, EDGE or BOMA standards. The company will also allocate the proceeds to continue investing in the conversion of stabilised assets into EDGE-certified properties.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is already one of the main drivers of transformation in the financial sector and BBVA has been looking closely at how people incorporate it into their work. Training, new internal roles that promote its uptake, and a culture that encourages experimentation are some of the pillars of a strategy aimed at transforming how work is done across the organization.
Türkiye Garanti Bankası A.Ş., announced its financial statements dated 31 March 2026. Based on the consolidated financials, the Bank’s net income in the first 3 months of the year recorded as TL 33 billion 615 million 247 thousand.
Corporate & Investment Banking
BBVA CIB posted revenues of €2.185 billion in the first quarter of 2026
BBVA’s Corporate & Investment Banking (CIB) area posted revenues of €2.185 billion in the first quarter of 2026, up 24% compared to the same period in 2025 (at constant euros, excluding the accounting impact of the hyperinflation adjustment). All business units contributed to this performance, with double-digit year-on-year growth reflecting the strength and diversification of the area: Global Markets (GM), +31%; Global Transaction Banking (GTB), +17%; and Investment Banking & Finance (IB&F), +47%. Loan book also showed strong momentum, increasing by 9% compared to December 2025. This growth was driven by both IB&F, with particularly strong performance in Project Finance and Corporate Lending, especially in Europe and the United States; and GTB. In addition, attributable profit exceeded €1 billion for the first time in a quarter, reaching €1.083 billion (+24% year-on-year at constant euros, +18% year-on-year in current euros).
BBVA reported a profit of €2.99 billion in the first quarter of 2026, a 10.8% increase yoy (up 14.1% at constant exchange rates), supported by momentum in the banking business: customer loans grew 17% (at constant exchange rates), boosting net interest income by more than 20% yoy. This growth was accompanied by high levels of profitability and value creation for shareholders: ROTE stood at 21.7% and tangible book value per share plus dividends rose 18.1% yoy¹. All this with a solid capital position, with the CET1 ratio reaching 12.83% at the end of March. On May 6, BBVA will begin the final tranche of the extraordinary share buyback program, with a maximum amount of €1.46 billion.
Garanti BBVA has been recognized in two categories at the Environmental Finance Sustainable Debt Awards 2026 for Türkiye’s first biodiversity-themed bond issuance. The bond channels funding toward the protection of marine and freshwater ecosystems and introduces an innovative financing model in the sustainable debt markets.
BBVA México acted as bookrunner in Dalton Financiera’s MXN 500 million issuance of trust-issued certificados bursátiles (CEBURES).
BBVA channeled €30 billion into sustainable business for social activities in 2025, 52% more than in 2024, accelerating its growth rate. Activity was distributed across financing for entrepreneurs and microbusinesses, financing for the construction of social infrastructure, products for financial inclusion, social bond placements, loans linked to social indicators, and financing for clients whose activities generate a social impact.
BBVA has acted as Joint Sustainability Coordinator in the structuring of Australia’s first ‘blue loan’, aligned with the recognised Blue Finance Guidelines Version 2.0 from the World Bank subsidiary, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), linked to the refinancing of the Mundaring Water Treatment Plant (MWTP) in Western Australia for $170.5 million.
BBVA has executed two synthetic securitisation transactions, referenced to a residential mortgage portfolio with a combined value of around €3 billion. The transactions allows the bank to release close to 60% of the initial regulatory capital associated with the portfolio, increasing its capacity to continue financing its clients.
BBVA has advised Cellnex on the update of its sustainability-linked financing framework as Co-Sustainability Structuring Advisor, driving the telecommunications enterprise in the development of its strategy in this area. This mandate reinforces the long-term relationship between both entities and BBVA’s role as a trust partner in sustainability.
This innovative AI-powered tool provides the bank’s commercial team access to detailed geospatial information in real time. The goal: to turn complex data into personalized financial solutions for producers.
BBVA CIB helps its clients finance their production stock or inventory as it moves across the globe, connecting manufacturing centres in Asia, industrial hubs in Europe and North America, and commodity markets in Latin America. In doing so, it demonstrates how financial innovation can unlock liquidity, strengthen supply chains and support the continued growth of international trade.
BBVA’s Milan and São Paulo offices have earned the international LEED Gold certification for sustainable construction. This recognition confirms both spaces’ high environmental performance and their contribution to a more sustainable, efficient and people-centered work model.
BBVA has completed the second tranche of the €3.96 billion framework program announced in December 2025 – the largest in its history – after reaching the maximum planned amount of €1.0 billion.
Garanti BBVA has signed memorandums of understanding (MoU) with Bilkent Cyberpark, İTÜ ARI Teknokent, and ODTÜ Teknokent to connect technology startups with financial expertise, mentorship, and global networks. The partnerships will offer entrepreneurs multilayered support—from financial literacy training and acceleration programs to tailored banking solutions.
Christophe Galfard is a theoretical physicist and science communicator, renowned for his ability to explain the great concepts of the universe in an accessible and engaging way. He earned his PhD at the University of Cambridge, where he worked alongside Stephen Hawking, one of the most influential figures in contemporary physics.
As of April 14, 2026, BBVA will be required to maintain a buffer of 23.94 percent of the total risk-weighted assets (RWAs) for its European resolution group. With an MREL ratio of 28.89 percent at the end of December 2025, the bank is already well above this threshold and also meets the additional requirements for subordination and capital buffers.
BBVA Chair Carlos Torres Vila analyzed the main global economic challenges and Europe’s role in a context marked by geopolitical uncertainty this Monday at the ‘Wake Up, Spain!’ event, organized by ‘El Español’. During his remarks, he highlighted the need to strengthen European unity and mobilize investment. The response lies in “more Europe: greater unity and stronger investment ambition. Thinking more in terms of the continent and less along national lines,” he said. He also emphasized the role of artificial intelligence and the energy transition as key drivers of future growth and underlined that “at BBVA, we are leading the transformation of banking in the new era of artificial intelligence.”
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 Basel Committee has designed two liquidity ratios to ensure that financial institutions have sufficient liquidity to meet their short-term and long-term obligations: LCR and NSFR. These two requirements are intended to reduce risks in case of episodes of financial turbulence.