This year, the Davos Forum will be celebrating its most special and challenging edition, in the midst of the ongoing COVID pandemic. For this reason, the 51st edition of the World Economic Forum (World Economic Forum, WEF) will be held in two phases: An virtual one in January and another one, face-to-face, in May. The summit will convene politicians, businessmen and representatives of social and cultural organizations at a crucial time for the world, under the tagline ‘The Great Reset‘.

The emergence of technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning and blockchain has exponentially multiplied the volume of data used, putting current computer systems to the test. Despite the fact that the arrival of 5G promises an improvement in these limitations, it is not enough to respond to the performance demands of this latest generation technology. An alternative to this is edge computing.

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.

Pressure to get on board with remote working, adapting to the changes in a market revolutionised by the pandemic, and dealing with customers who have new and urgent needs. Startups have faced unprecedented challenges in 2020, but their digital DNA has helped them make fast decisions to handle these tests.

Garanti BBVA offers its clients an advanced long-term currency transaction service through its Forward product, available on its website’s business section.

BBVA and Anthemis are participating in the second $3.4 million funding round that Cledara recently held. The startup now has 150 clients thanks to its innovative SaaS (Software as a Service) solution to centralize payment systems in a single platform.

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.

BBVA has begun to roll out the trials of what will become its first commercial service for the trading and custody of digital assets. The new service, which is to be offered through BBVA Switzerland, will make it possible to manage bitcoin transactions and have deposits in this cryptocurrency.

BBVA has launched a service in Spain that allows customers to instantaneously and securely pay for lottery tickets and bets and collect winnings using their mobile phone. By going to the bank’s app, customers can use Bizum to generate a QR code that allows them to pay or collect money at 11,000 Loterías y Apuestas del Estado retailers. This is the first time that people have been able to pay in physical stores using Bizum and a QR code.

This award recognizes BBVA Next Technologies’ commitment using technology to face COVID-19 crisis.

The European Banking Federation recently organized a conference on innovation and cybersecurity where the role of banks in the digital economy and platform economy was discussed, among other topics. According to BBVA, the key to ensuring that financial services benefit from this economy is the creation of a framework for the different types of participating companies to compete fairly.

It’s a challenge to find out what society thinks about a company or brand, especially when you have 40 million followers spread across 10 countries and 190 social media profiles, like BBVA. Even so, the winners of the BBVA Hackathon 2020 accomplished it in only three days, developing a tool to measure users’ feelings about the bank on social media, using machine learning techniques.

The Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation has awarded BBVA the Special Mention in Design, in the Company category, of the Spanish Innovation and Design Awards 2020. The jury has chosen BBVA for “its ability to build solid bridges between traditional business areas and the world of strategic design.”

Biometric advances are already being used in a multitude of financial sector processes. Artificial intelligence can analyse speech and facial characteristics to create a digital identity that allows for a much more secure online setting, where there’s a proliferation of apps from customised services to health care.

The teams will have 40 uninterrupted hours to solve one of the 12 programming challenges posed by BBVA.

BBVA remains committed to this global network, participating in a new pilot project with which it has managed to integrate payments from the SWIFT gpi network with the U.K.’s national instant payment system. Progress that makes it possible to break away from the time zone restrictions in the process, going one step further in the exploration of this kind of payment.

BBVA has launched Aqua, a new line of pioneering credit cards in Spain which feature a dynamic CVV code and do not contain card numbers (PAN) or expiration dates printed on them. This reinforces security both for its digital and physical versions since not having this data prevents possible fraudulent use of them. In addition, BBVA´s app has renewed the entire payment experience to make it easier for the customer to manage their expenses and order the services it offers based on their use. The bank is already working to launch this mobile experience in other countries.

BBVA is partnering with technology companies to be closer to its clients, who are starting to turn to third party digital vendors to cover their financial needs. “We see these partnerships as a way of growing our customer base,” stated Carlos Torres Vila, Group Executive Chairman of BBVA, speaking at a virtual panel discussion with Marcelo Claure, CEO of Softbank, that took place on the last day of South Summit.

Garanti BBVA launches Bonus Diji, a rewards credit card that is extremely secure, as it does not include any numbers or codes that can be copied.

The role of banks in the financial crisis caused by the pandemic and their role in funneling resources and funds towards a green recovery where the two key takeaways from a panel presentation devoted to sustainability that took place at the South Summit event, which is taking place this week in Madrid. “Everything is changing. We are living in a very challenging time. We are living in a global pandemic situation and also in a global economic crisis at this moment after the pandemic, so, it’s time to act,” said Head of Global Innovation & Analytics at BBVA CIB (Corporate Investment Banking) and Global Sustainability Office Ricardo Laiseca.

Garanti BBVA is betting on technology and innovation to continue leading the payment system and credit card sector. Now customers can complete the credit card application and authorization process on Bonus’ website and start enjoying all of the benefits immediately.

Blue is a virtual assistant that uses various artificial intelligence tools to help BBVA customers use the mobile application to complete tasks as well get detailed, personalized information about their accounts. This is how it works.

On May 25, 2020, the General Data Protection Regulation celebrated its second year of entry into application. As envisaged in the standard itself, the European Commission performed an assessment on its application and functioning over this period of time, taking into account the feedback provided by associations, companies, consumers and EU institutions. The commission has finally released the corresponding findings, which concludes that, on top of having a very positive impact, the COVID-19 crisis has demonstrated that the Regulation is prepared for the new digital age

In its efforts to continue supporting the financial group’s digital transformation,  BBVA Hackathon is announcing its 20th edition, which will take place on October 16th – 18th. It will be virtual this year, with countries participating where BBVA Open Innovation has a presence like Mexico, Spain, Colombia and Peru.

Through a proof of concept, BBVA and Spanish startup Multiverse have tried out and benchmarked different quantum technology platforms to solve a classic problem of finance: The optimization of investment portfolios with real market data. Thanks to this analysis, published in a scientific paper, the authors have elucidated new formulas that could help speed up this type of calculation, maximizing profitability and minimizing risk.

BBVA Garanti has become the first bank worldwide to complete integration of the new SWIFT GPI pre-validation service, an international money transfer service developed by SWIFT. Controlled testing of the service is ongoing.

BBVA USA today announced that it is collaborating with Google to offer consumers a digital bank account through Google Pay, continuing its focus on innovation in the financial industry.

British magazine, ‘The Banker,’ which is part of the Financial Times Group, has announced the results of its digital innovation in banking awards. BBVA emerged as the winner in both Europe and Latin America.

How do cybercriminals think? What techniques do they use and how do they set up to implement them? What are their goals? There’s nothing better than putting yourself inside the bad guy’s mind so you will be ready to react. We tell you how these criminals behave.

Acceleration programmes, like Open Innovation from BBVA helping startups from the fintech ecosystem, are an opportunity to offer tailored support that helps entrepreneurs to refine their model, boost their growth and access investment. In the case of the BBVA programme, the project is bringing to a close nine months of workshops, mentoring and support. For the bank and entrepreneurs, the initiative has provided an opportunity to learn together.

The sixth generation of WiFi delivers faster connectivity, expands its reach, and supports a greater density of connected devices. This technology, which goes hand-in-hand with 5G, will facilitate the rollout of sensors for the Internet of Things (IoT) and the creation of immersive and augmented virtual reality experiences.

“Hello, I’m Blue, the BBVA virtual assistant. What can I do for you today?” This is how the first virtual assistant developed entirely by BBVA introduces itself. The newly launched virtual assistant responds to more than 100 customer requests among the 800 features that are integrated in the BBVA app. This makes Blue the most comprehensive virtual assistant on the market. The new tool takes advantage of natural language processing (NPL) and machine learning, which facilitates both voice activated and text-based customer interaction with the app.

The uncertainty triggered by COVID-19 has led to a rise in cyberattacks against individuals in Spain. BBVA has therefore hosted several webinars in recent months to offer practical advice to customers and non-customers and thus alert the general public to the risk of fraud on the Internet. During these online events, involving members of the BBVA Cybersecurity team, including Roberto Ortiz, Global Head of Security Culture and Training at BBVA (People Information Security), speakers addressed the need to educate, inform and raise awareness of cyber attacks to protect the identity and finances of network users.

This partnership deal will let BBVA employees take an official master’s degree in Big Data, gain recognition as data scientists or achieve an industrial doctorate in data science. In addition, the agreement will enable students at Universidad de Navarra to carry out research alongside BBVA and even join the bank later on.

Today, a group of 16 major European banks from five countries (Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Spain) paved the way for the future launch of the European Payments Initiative (EPI).

BBVA’s digital development strategy of the past several years is now strongly supporting the digital management of customers’ finances. The implementation of agile work methodologies, DevOps practices—coordination across different teams throughout software development—and a global perspective were key for digital solutions to provide value and become scalable among business units and countries. Thanks to BBVA’s commitment to technology and new ways of working, the bank was able to guarantee service quality, adapt its way of working—with 90% of employees working from home—and, at the same time, enhance its response capacity.

The process of choosing startups in open innovation is proving increasingly difficult in the face of the proliferation of emerging companies globally. BBVA has various scouting mechanisms, and to do this it takes into account factors such as the degree of maturity, whether the solution dovetails with the bank’s needs, and the entrepreneurial team’s passion.

Beyond hastening the adoption of specific technologies – such as telemedicine or robotics – one of the brightest outcomes of the scenario brought about by the coronavirus pandemic has been the unprecedented collaborative spirit that has emerged, which could unleash deeper changes in technological development in the coming years. The challenges posed by the coronavirus aftermath may lead to increasing levels of data sharing and faster deployment of solutions to preserve privacy, which could help lay the foundation for new digital infrastructures.