The COVID-19 pandemic has further accelerated the implementation of new forms of flexible working, for which digital transformation has been key. Thousands of workers have had to convert their homes into places of work, almost overnight. This fact has affected the work life balance, and it became of utmost importance in an ecosystem where work and life were sharing space, to facilitate that balance.

In an especially hard year for the world of entrepreneurship, BBVA continued supporting entrepreneurs who create a positive social impact. The bank devoted €7.7 million euros (5 percent of the total investment in social programs) to entrepreneurship initiatives, benefitting 2.61 million entrepreneurs in 2020.

True to its commitment to customers and clients, shareholders and employees and in compliance with its fiscal transparency pledge, BBVA has released its Total Tax Contribution report, as it voluntarily does every year since 2011. BBVA's fiscal strategy is aligned with the OECD/G20 Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) Project and the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the protection of Human Rights.

“Work in the Age of Data” is the 12th book in the collection published by BBVA to disseminate and discuss fundamental issues of our time. This series is part of the bank’s OpenMind project -- a digital community that aims to generate and disseminate knowledge in an open and free manner.

The book, which addresses the effects of the digital revolution on the labor market, can be downloaded for free in Spanish and English in different electronic formats.

Roughly half the world’s population still lives on only the equivalent of two U.S. dollars per day, whereas worldwide unemployment stands at 5.7 percent.  This might seem like a low percentage, but in many parts of the world, merely having a job does not translate into being able to escape poverty. The eradication of poverty depends on all parts of society having access to stable employment and decent wages. This is the objective of United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 8: “Promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth, employment, and decent work for all,”  a goal BBVA works toward each day, not only internally in its relationship with its employees, but also with a business model that more broadly contributes to its fulfillment.

BBVA CEO Carlos Torres Vila got a first-hand glimpse into the level of progress that the BBVA Microfinance Foundation's digital strategy is enabling. Bancamía, the Foundation’s lending arm in the country, is managing to reach more and more customers who, until recently, had struggled to access financing as a result of the digital divide. BBVA’s CEO learned about two of the entrepreneurs backed by the institution and how microcredits have afforded them new opportunities to pursue a brighter future.