Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria facts for kids

"Banco Bilbao Vizcaya" redirects here. For the building, see Banco Bilbao Vizcaya (building).

Quick facts for kids
Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A.

BBVA head-office building in Bilbao
Type	Sociedad Anónima
Traded as	BMAD: BBVA NYSE: BBVA BMV: BBVA
ISIN	ISIN: [https://isin.toolforge.org/?language=en&isin=ES0113211835 ES0113211835]
Industry	Financial services
Predecessor	Banco Bilbao Vizcaya, S.A. Argentaria, S.A.
Founded	Bilbao, Spain May 28, 1857; 168 years ago (1857-05-28)
Headquarters	Bilbao and Madrid , Spain
Key people	Carlos Torres Vila (Group Executive Chairman) Onur Genç (CEO)
Services	Banking, insurance, asset management
Revenue	€29.54 billion (2023)
Operating income	€17.23 billion (2023)
Net income	€8 019 million (2023)
Total assets	€775.55 billion (2023)
Total equity	€55.26 billion (2023)
Number of employees	121.488 (2023)

BBVA (which stands for Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria) is a huge Spanish company that offers financial services. It's like a really big bank! BBVA has its main offices in Madrid and Bilbao, Spain.

It's one of the largest financial groups in the world. You can find BBVA in many countries. These include Spain, Portugal, Mexico, South America, Turkey, Italy, and Romania.

The bank started as Banco de Bilbao on May 28, 1857, in Bilbao. Today, BBVA's main operations are in Madrid, at a place called "Ciudad BBVA." It is the second-largest bank in Spain, right after Banco Santander. BBVA's shares are traded on major stock exchanges. These include the Madrid Stock Exchange, the New York Stock Exchange, and the Mexican Stock Exchange. It is also part of important stock indexes like the IBEX 35.

By the end of 2023, BBVA had about €775 billion in assets. This makes it the second-largest Spanish financial company based on its assets. At that time, it had almost 6,000 offices and over 121,000 employees. It served 71.5 million customers in more than 30 countries. In 2018, it was ranked the 42nd largest bank globally.

In 2022, "The Banker" magazine named BBVA the best-performing bank in Spain. Since 2014, the European Central Bank directly supervises BBVA. This is because it is considered a very important financial institution.

History in Spain

How BBVA Started

The story of BBVA began in 1857 in Bilbao. This city is in the Basque region of northern Spain. A group called the Board of Trade decided to create Banco de Bilbao. It was set up to issue money and help businesses with loans.

Later, in 1901, Banco de Vizcaya was founded. It also started its work in Bilbao. Over time, this bank grew and spread across Spain. In 1988, Banco de Bilbao and Banco de Vizcaya decided to join together. The new bank was named BBV in 1989.

Joining Forces to Create BBVA

BBVA's former logo.

In 1991, the Spanish government created a public bank called Argentaria. This bank brought together several public banks in Spain. Between 1993 and 1998, Argentaria became a private company.

BBV and Argentaria announced they would merge on October 19, 1999. They wanted to create an even stronger bank. The new bank, BBVA, was very large and financially strong. It had a good mix of businesses and risks across different places. This helped it grow its profits even more.

Growing in Spain

BBVA head offices in Madrid

After expanding internationally, BBVA focused on growing in Spain. They wanted to become bigger in Catalonia, where they had a smaller presence. Between 2012 and 2014, they bought two financial groups. These were Unnim Banc and Catalunya Banc. Both had been taken over by the Spanish government. These groups included six savings banks from Catalonia.

In 2020, BBVA talked about merging with Sabadell, a smaller bank. This would have created Spain's second-biggest bank. However, they couldn't agree on a price, so the talks ended.

Becoming More Digital

In 2007, BBVA started a big project to become a digital bank. This meant using more technology for banking services. After making these changes, they saw a 19% increase in new customers each year. By 2015, they had 14.8 million digital customers.

In 2019, BBVA decided to use one single brand name everywhere. This meant names like Francés in Argentina and Bancomer in Mexico disappeared. Now, all their banks are simply called BBVA. For example, Garanti Bank in Turkey became Garanti BBVA.

In 2021, BBVA announced plans to reduce costs. They also planned to cut about 3,000 jobs in Spain. This was after their profits dropped in late 2020.

Credit Ratings

Credit ratings are like report cards for banks. They show how financially strong a bank is. These ratings help people and companies decide if they want to lend money to the bank. As of January 2023, BBVA had good ratings from major agencies:

Rating Agency	Long Term Rating	Short Term Rating
S&P	A (Outlook: Stable)	A-1
Moody's	A3 (Outlook: Stable)	P-2
Fitch	A− (Outlook: Stable)	F-2
DBRS	A (high) (Outlook: Stable)	R-1 (middle)

International Expansion

Former offices in Paseo de la Castellana, Madrid

BBVA started expanding internationally in 1902. Banco de Bilbao opened a branch in Paris and then in London in 1918. This made it the first Spanish bank to have offices abroad. In the 1970s, the banks that would become BBVA grew globally. They opened offices in major financial cities in Europe, America, and Asia. The bank also started buying local banks in different countries.

In 2019, the bank changed its name to BBVA everywhere. They stopped using local brand names. For example, in Argentina, it was Francés, and in Mexico, it was Bancomer. Now, they are all just BBVA. Garanti in Turkey also became Garanti BBVA.

Latin America

In 1979, Banco de Vizcaya bought the Commercial Bank of Mayagüez in Puerto Rico. This bank was founded by local business people in 1967. When it became BBVA Puerto Rico, it grew by buying other banks.

In 1995, the group entered Peru by buying Banco Continental. They also entered Mexico by buying Probursa. Probursa later joined with BBVA Bancomer to form a large financial group. This group works in banking and insurance.

In 1996, BBVA started in Colombia by buying Banco Ganadero. They also expanded into Argentina by buying BBVA Francés. In Mexico, they bought Banca Cremí and Banco de Oriente.

In 1997, BBVA entered Venezuela by buying Provincial Bank. They also grew in Argentina by buying Banco de Credito Argentino. In Bolivia, they started a pension fund business called BBVA Previsión AFP.

In 1998, the bank came to Chile after buying Banco BHIF. A year later, they bought AFP Provida. They also entered Brazil by buying Banco Excel-Econômico. In Argentina, BBVA bought the insurance company Consolidar.

Headquarters of BBVA México in Mexico City

In 2000, BBV Probursa and Bancomer merged in Mexico. They created BBVA Bancomer, which became the largest bank in the country. In 2004, BBVA bought all the remaining shares of Bancomer. They also bought Hipotecaria Nacional, a company specializing in home loans.

By 2001, BBVA had set up a single system for all its businesses in all countries. The BBVA brand was then used for all its banks in Latin America. In 2004, the banks in Chile and Colombia changed their names to simply BBVA.

In 2006, BBVA bought Banco Granahorrar in Colombia. This bank had been taken over by the state. It then merged with BBVA Colombia. This created one of the largest banking groups in the country. In 2017, BBVA bought Openpay, a Mexican company. Openpay specializes in online payments.

In 2018, Scotiabank Chile took control of BBVA Chile. The bank's name changed to Scotiabank Azul. It fully merged with Scotiabank in October 2018.

United States

In 2004, BBVA started expanding into the US market. They bought banks in the southern US, using the strength of their Mexican bank, BBVA Bancomer. They bought Valley Bank in California in the second quarter of that year.

In 2005, they bought Banco Laredo in Texas. In 2006, they bought Texas Regional Bancshares. In 2007, BBVA acquired Alabama Compass Bank in the US. This made their presence stronger there. Later, BBVA used one name for all its US banks: "BBVA Compass".

In 2009, they bought Guaranty Bank in Texas after it faced problems. In 2014, BBVA bought Simple, a US digital banking company. They paid 117 million dollars for it. In 2015, they bought Spring Studio, a California company. It specializes in user experience and digital design.

By 2018, BBVA USA was one of the 30 largest banks in the US. In 2020, BBVA USA was sold to PNC Financial Services for US$11.6 billion.

Turkey

In 2010, BBVA bought 24.9% of Turkiye Garanti Bankasi AS. This is the second-largest bank in Turkey. BBVA agreed with Dogus Group, a major shareholder, to manage the bank together. Later, BBVA's share increased to 25.01%. In 2014, BBVA bought another 14.89% of Garanti bank. This brought their total share to 39.9%.

In 2017, they bought another 9.95% from Dogus. This increased their share to 49.85%. In November 2021, BBVA offered to buy the remaining shares of Garanti bank. By May 2022, BBVA owned 86% of Garanti BBVA.

Italy

In 2021, BBVA opened its services in Italy, mainly online.

Corporate Social Responsibility

In 1932, BBVA created a department to share knowledge about money and finance. In 2010, they created BBVA Research. This group combines economic research with global market analysis.

In 1988, the BBVA Foundation was created. It supports scientific research and cultural projects. It also spreads knowledge and recognizes talented people through awards and scholarships.

In 2007, BBVA started the Microfinance Foundation in Latin America. This group helps entrepreneurs in difficult situations. It aims to help them develop their businesses sustainably. In 2021, the OECD recognized this foundation. It was noted as a top contributor to development in Latin America. It was also recognized for promoting gender equality worldwide.

In March 2022, BBVA launched a plan to teach people about money. This plan aims to help one million people improve their financial skills. It also promotes sustainable development and investing.

Sustainability

BBVA has been involved in sustainability since 2007. That year, it was one of the banks to join the first "green bond" issued by the EIB. Green bonds are used to fund environmentally friendly projects.

In 2021, BBVA became a founding member of the "Net-Zero Banking Alliance." This group is supported by the United Nations. It encourages banks to make sure their loans and investments lead to zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

In February 2022, BBVA was ranked first in the "Dow Jones Sustainability Index." This made it one of the "most sustainable banks in the world." In March 2022, BBVA invested 18.5 million euros in "LowerCarbon." This fund invests in companies that fight climate change.

In July 2022, BBVA joined the "Carbonplace" platform. This platform helps individuals and companies buy carbon credits. Carbon credits help balance out carbon emissions.

Presence on Stock Market Indexes

IBEX 35

BBVA is part of the IBEX 35. This is Spain's main stock market index. It includes the 35 most actively traded stocks in Spain. As of September 30, 2020, BBVA had a market value of 15.816 billion euros.

Eurostoxx 50

BBVA is also listed on the Eurostoxx 50. This index includes major companies from the Eurozone. Other banks like Santander Bank and Deutsche Bank are also on this list.

NYSE

BBVA bank is also listed on the New York Stock Exchange. This is one of the biggest stock exchanges in the world.

Mexican Stock Exchange

BBVA bank is also listed on the Mexican Stock Exchange. This allows people in Mexico to buy and sell its shares.

Emerging and Growth-Leading Economies (EAGLEs)

BBVA Research created a group of countries called "Emerging and growth-leading economies" (EAGLEs). These are important emerging markets that are expected to lead global economic growth. They offer good opportunities for investors.