Garanti BBVA Pensions was honored with the silver award in the Digital Transformation category of the Smart-i Awards for its innovative approach to digitizing insurance sales on Garanti BBVA Mobile.

It will soon be enough to spot a shirt we like and just ask a voice-enabled AI device to send it home in our size and in a different color, bypassing the entire traditional online shopping process. Artificial intelligence is set to transform shopping into a conversational experience, explained Carmela Gómez, Global Head of Open Banking at BBVA, at the Sibos financial event. AI will also enable companies to anticipate cash needs, open up new financial opportunities for vulnerable communities, and make access to credit easier for gig economy workers.

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BBVA has introduced an innovative new feature to its banking app, allowing customers to personalize their Visa cards using Image Playground with Apple Intelligence technology. The functionality is now available in Spain on virtual cards for users with iPhone 15 Pro and newer models, and will soon be extended to physical cards.

BBVA announced the renewal of its technology services agreement with Kyndryl, the leading provider of enterprise technology services, and the creation of two joint ventures in Spain and Mexico. Thanks to this agreement, the bank will improve user experience, invest in talent and guarantee the stability, security, resilience and robustness of its IT operations.

BBVA has launched a new service that enables financial institutions outside Europe to send payments to Spain in just seconds, at any time of day and on any day of the year. The service significantly enhances efficiency for sending banks while allowing recipients to access funds instantly, helping corporates optimize treasury management and offering retail customers a seamless experience.

Garanti BBVA Crypto is now offering trading and transfers in Tether (USDT), allowing users to do business with the popular dollar-pegged stablecoin via the Ethereum network and trade USDT pairs.

BBVA has taken a significant step forward in its data-driven transformation strategy with the successful implementation of ADA, its global data platform, in Mexico and Colombia. This strategic advance seeks to improve and accelerate the bank's ability to offer personalized and relevant products and services to its customers. The cloud-based data platform, built on Amazon Web Services (AWS) technologies, enables the centralized consolidation of analytical processes, ensures real-time access to data, and scales the use of artificial intelligence.

The three-year project, titled Fair Learning, will address the main ethical, technical and regulatory challenges posed by the growing automation of decisions that impact society. A multidisciplinary team of BBVA and The University of Navarra will explore the use of advanced mathematical and statistical methods to correct data bias, integrate philosophical and ethical frameworks into model development, and devise a set of best practices based on international legislation.

BBVA has reached a milestone in its commitment to artificial intelligence, surpassing 1,000 data scientists on staff. To further enhance this talent, the bank offers them a professional development model that allows these professionals to advance in their careers without giving up their specialization. In this innovative approach, technical expertise is placed on equal footing with team management as a path for professional growth, allowing them to remain involved in AI development as they advance in their careers.

Proptech company PropHero has secured financing from BBVA Spark to drive its growth in the Spanish real estate market, where it plans to double its business volume by year-end 2025.

Generative AI with autonomous financial agents, quantum computing capable of spotting fraud in seconds, and banking services embedded in health or e-commerce apps. According to 'Fintech 2040', a report drawn up by BNPL provider Riverty, this could well be how fintech evolves over the next two decades. The study suggests a world where the boundaries between payments, lending, insurance and investment fade, and financial services become an integral part of people’s everyday digital lives.

BBVA continues to drive growth in Europe with the appointment of Walter Rizzi as Head of Digital Banking in Italy, a key role in adapting the bank’s offering to the needs of the local market.

BBVA has unveiled its cryptocurrency trading and custody service for bitcoin and ether, which is now available to all retail customers of legal age in Spain. After filing the relevant disclosure with the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV), the bank has been gradually rolling out the service in recent weeks. Customers can now use this service to trade in bitcoin and ether directly through the BBVA app, all within a fully integrated environment that also includes the bank’s other financial services.

If you’ve managed to put aside some money and are now wondering what to do with it, the BBVA app makes it easy. Now you can learn to invest from your phone, with tools designed for beginners and with no jargon or obstacles.

Today in Frankfurt, BBVA officially launched its new digital bank in Germany. It combines cutting-edge technology, through one of the top financial apps in the world, with a compelling value proposition: an interest-bearing checking account paying three percent for the first 12 months, and a debit card with a three percent cashback on purchases - both paid monthly and completely free of charges, with no fees. “We’re bringing something new to Germany. A banking experience that combines the simplicity and convenience of a fee-free account, typical of digital actors, with the full range of products, reliability, and trust of a universal bank,” said BBVA CEO Onur Genç.

Ever wanted to manage your money better but weren’t sure where to start? BBVA has taken another step forward in its commitment to improving the financial health of its customers by launching a coach based on artificial intelligence (AI) that supports them in every financial decision. Integrated into the bank’s mobile app, the personal trainer analyzes your circumstances, helps you set goals, and suggests tailored plans so you can achieve your financial goals step by step.

The first edition of Global Finance AI in Finance Awards named BBVA the best bank in Spain for its artificial intelligence strategy, both within the organization and in its financial solutions for individuals. The publication also recognized one of BBVA’s revenue forecasting tools as the top AI risk management solution in Mexico and Latin America.

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Maya Ackerman, known for her research in algorithmic music composition, reflected at BBVA's FinAI Summit on whether artificial intelligence is creative and how it can help humans achieve better results when developing their own creations.  Far from competing with human ingenuity, AI is emerging as an ally capable of unlocking ideas, inspiring new approaches, and enhancing our creative potential.

Garanti BBVA Crypto recently launched a variety of advanced new features on its mobile app. With nearly 100,000 users, the app is powered by the bank’s robust infrastructure and highest quality standards, ensuring a simple, fast and secure investment experience.

BBVA has adopted a new slogan, ‘Let’s move forward,’ replacing ‘Creating opportunities.’ The shift, part of a broader rebrand, aims to reflect the bank’s commitment to customers and its support for individual and business progress with a positive, empathetic tone. The move seeks to sharpen BBVA’s differentiation in an increasingly competitive market, while reinforcing its focus on inclusion and diversity.

The leading publication of financial information, of the Financial Times Group, presented BBVA its Technology Award for the world’s best bank for technology use. The Group’s new data platform, ADA, also received an award for the best banking transformation project in the world.

The bank has expanded its partnership with the tech giant from 3,300 to 11,000 ChatGPT Enterprise licences, as part of its plan to extend generative AI capabilities across the entire organisation. Employees report that automating routine tasks with this tool allows them to save an average of nearly three hours of work per week, which they can then dedicate to strategic tasks. More than 80% of licensed users use it daily. BBVA offers training, has created a community to share best practices, and encourages internal innovation through idea ‘hackathons’.

The digital revolution is transforming every economic sector—and financeis no exception. Cryptoassets, tokenization, and blockchain-basedtechnologies are accelerating an inevitable evolution. In this context,traditional banks face a historic opportunity: to lead this transformation bycombining their experience, credibility, and global reach with the agility andinnovation of the crypto ecosystem. The future isn’t about choosingbetween the old and the new—it’s about merging both worlds into aseamless experience.

From May 5 to 8, BBVA will organize the first FinAI Summit, featuring talks, panel discussions and master classes, in an event designed to be the key forum on how AI could reshape financial services and products, and how this could impact society at large. Speakers will include international experts such as Kay Firth-Butterfield, previously head of artificial intelligence at the World Economic Forum. The public can attend online by registering on the FinAI Summit website.

You can register for the event at this link

BBVA has provided £15m in venture debt to Plum, a British personal finance app. The deal will help Plum expand and scale, and reflects BBVA’s growing commitment to the UK as Europe's leading hub for entrepreneurship and venture capital.

Guardrails are mechanisms to guide the responsible development of AI so that it does not become a technological, social, or security threat. Classical and generative AI require different types of guardrails, as the latter’s ability to engage directly with end users has introduced a whole new set of challenges for developers—such as the mass production of fake news or the creation of new methods for perpetrating cybercrime.