The quarter has been very productive in terms of the launch of new products and services and commercial campaigns, above all in CBB:
- In the SME segment, the most notable aspect has been the implementation of the new model for attracting SMEs, with the goal “to be the SME bank”, win market share and improve positioning within this segment. The commercial actions have aimed at supporting new lending, with a particular focus on internationalization plans. Of particular note has been the launch of “Credipyme”, a tool that calculates the risk profile and capacity for debt of SMEs and estimates what finance can be provided for them. In addition, the second edition of the “Plan+Negocio” plan has been launched. It has also been extended to SMEs to allow BBVA to boost the management of finance for companies, help attract new customers and build loyalty.
- In corporate banking there has been outstanding participation by BBVA in all the high-yield issues of Spanish companies, with placement volumes of more than €1,300m.
- Excellent management of ICO funds. Cumulative half-monthly data through to April 6, 2014 shows that BBVA has now formalized 12,349 operations amounting to €776m, representing over double the operations contracted in the same period last year and three times the amount formalized. BBVA’s market share in ICO credit facilities is now 16.0%, 131 basis points more than a year ago.
- In insurance the “PPA BBVA” campaigns made a big impact. Customers were guaranteed a minimum return of 2.6% for a time horizon of 10 years; also the communication and marketing making people aware of the new “Multirriesgo Hogar” (Multi-peril home) insurance which has led to the writing of 34,000 new policies in the quarter.
- In the digital world new products are being developed for digital channels, such as the “Préstamo Inmediato” (Immediate loan), which assigns a credit limit to each customer instantly via bbva.es or any BBVA ATM. This new loan has proved popular and increased revenue year-on-year by 85%, as well as accounting for 10% of the transactions via digital channels. In addition, there has been a high rate of penetration by SMEs in online banking, with 63.6% being active customers of this banking channel.
With respect to prizes and awards, BBVA Asset Management has been named the best Spanish manager in the 26 to 40 rated funds category by the European mutual fund analyst Fundclass. The award recognizes the consistency of fund management.
The terms of attracting customers and building their loyalty the following are worthy of note:
- Increase of over 10,000 in the number of new customers in the Premium segment over the quarter.
- The customer digitization process continues at a good pace. At the end of the quarter it has reached more than 2.2 million customers who are active users of the web.
- Over 140,000 customers now enjoy all the advantages of BBVA Wallet, a product that allows them to keep all their cards in virtual form on their cell phones and access all their functionalities.
Finally , with respect to corporate responsibility, the “Yo Soy Empleo” (I am employment) program has supported 2,657 SMEs through March 31, 2014 in creating 4,301 new jobs since its launch in February 2013, with 70% of the jobs being permanent contracts. Those finding jobs supported by BBVA had been unemployed for an average of 13 months.
