Sustainability strategy

Sustainability and the fight against climate change represent one of the greatest disruptions in history with great opportunities for banks, helping clients to move towards a more sustainable world, minimizing the risks while maximizing the opportunities that arise. For BBVA, sustainability includes two areas of action: climate change and sustainable and inclusive growth.

For this reason, BBVA incorporates sustainability at the heart of its strategy, being, as we have previously mentioned, one of the six established strategic priorities. This strategic priority has been divided into three objectives included in BBVA’s General Sustainability Policy, which are:

• Foster new business through
  sustainability
• Achieve Net Zero 2050
• Make a positive impact

In 2018, BBVA presented its 2025 Commitment to channel €100 billion in sustainable finance by 2025 to contribute to the achievement of the SDGs and the challenges arising from the Paris Climate Agreement. Since then, the Group has advanced in the development of this priority, integrating sustainability transversally in internal management and processes and also in the relationship with customers and other stakeholders.

As of December, 2023, the bank had reached €206 billion at a pace that has pushed the bank to raise once again the goal, to €300 billion, three times its initial commitment.

BBVA is also committed to being Net Zero by 2050, not only for its direct emissions, goal already achieved since 2020, but also for indirect emissions, that is, those of the customers it finances. To achieve this goal, BBVA has committed to stop financing coal by 2030, in developed countries, and by 2040 in the rest of the geographies where it operates. In addition, BBVA has set up intermediate objectives to decarbonize its credit portfolio in some of the most carbon-intensive sectors and participates as a founding member of the Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA).

BBVA presents its Community Commitment, by which €550m will be allocated between 2021 and 2025 to social initiatives supporting inclusive growth in the countries where the Group operates. This commitment is a response to the most important social challenges and aims to contribute to a sustainable and inclusive recovery.

BBVA is also committed to transparency and therefore publishes the TCFD Report, following the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosure sponsored by the Financial Stability Board (hereinafter, FSB). In addition, since 2020 BBVA has published additional sustainability metrics following two of the most advanced standards in the market, such as those issued by the World Economic Forum-International Business Council (hereinafter, WEFIBC) or by the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (hereinafter SASB).

Contribution to society

In the area of contributing to the development of the companies in which the Group is present, BBVA has the Commitment to the Community 2025, through which it will allocate €550m between 2021 and 2025 to social initiatives to support the inclusive growth of these companies. The objective of this plan is that these initiatives reach 100 million people in 2025. Specifically, it will support five million entrepreneurs, it will contribute to the financial education training of two million people and it will help more than three million people to have access to a quality education.

This plan is structured around three main areas of action and seeks to contribute to the fulfillment of certain Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): reducing inequalities and promoting entrepreneurship (SDG 8 and 10), creating opportunities for all through education (SDG 4) and supporting research and culture (SDG 9 and 11).

In 2023, the BBVA Group earmarked 174 million euros for contribution to the community (131 million euros in 2022). This figure represents 2,17% of adjusted net attributable profit 79.4 million people have benefited from this contribution. In particular, among the direct beneficiaries, 3,307,147 entrepreneurs have benefited from support, 749.565 people have been trained in financial literacy and 861,023 people have participated in educational programs.

BBVA puts this community commitment into practice through its local banks and foundations, as well as supporting other foundations such as the BBVA Foundation, the BBVA Mexico Foundation and the BBVA Microfinance Foundation.

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Governance model

BBVA’s corporate bodies have defined and promoted that the Group has a strategy that incorporates sustainability as one of its priorities. Sustainability was embedded in the Group’s strategic plan in 2019.

For the Board of Directors, an essential element of this strategic approach is the integration of sustainability and the fight against climate change into the Group’s activities, managing the risks associated with these areas, and considering them a great opportunity for business in which to support its growth strategy. For monitoring and supervision, the Board is assisted by its committees on matters within their respective areas of concern:

• Executive Committee
• Audit Committee
• Appointments and Corporate Governance Committee
• Remuneration Committee
• Risk and Compliance Committee
• Technology and Cybersecurity Committee

In 2021, BBVA gave fresh impetus to its strategy by elevating sustainability to the highest executive level of the organization by creating the Global Sustainability business area, with direct reporting to the CEO and the Chair.

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 Materiality analysis

BBVA seeks to have a positive impact on the lives of people, companies and the society as a whole through its activity. To generate value for its stakeholders, BBVA carries out a regular analysis called the “Materiality analysis” which helps prioritize the most relevant issues for both stakeholders and BBVA.

BBVA carries out a qualitative materiality analysis to identify those environmental, social and governance issues that are significant for the Group and its stakeholders, taking into account in the analysis the double perspective of materiality, which underlies the NFRD and Law 11/2018, as well as in the GRI guide (December 2021 version). BBVA, based on this double perspective on materiality, identifies issues related to its business that could be currently or potentially affected by sustainability issues (“outside-in” perspective also known as “financial materiality”), as well as the way in which its activities could currently or potentially affect society and the environment (“inside-out” perspective also known as “impact materiality”).

The most notable material issues in 2023 are the following:

• Climate change
• Inclusive growth
• Customers
• Integrity
• Cybersecurity

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 WEF-IBC and SASB Metrics 

BBVA has assumed the commitment to disclose in a consistent, reliable and standardized manner the essential aspects of ESG (environmental, social and governance matters) related to its business. Among the different existing standards, BBVA includes its non-financial information in the Non-Financial Information Statement (EINF) for the year 2021, in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) guide.

In addition and on a voluntary basis, BBVA publishes progress in ESG disclosures, according to two metrics with a high reputation in the market:

• WEF-IBC core metrics. BBVA has been one of the first entities worldwide to support the Measuring Stakeholder Capitalism initiative of the International Business Council (IBC) of the World Economic Forum (WEF).
• Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) – Commercial Banks standards. The Sustainability Accounting Standards Board establishes standards to guide companies on the disclosure of relevant and consistent financial information in terms of sustainability.

Participation in international initiatives

For over 20 years, BBVA has participated actively in various supranational initiatives. BBVA wants to continue to be the leader in the international agenda in favor of inclusion and the fight against climate change, expressing its commitment to various initiatives.

In addition to the UN Global Compact, BBVA co-chairs the UNEP FI steering committee, holds the chair of the sustainable finance working group at the European Banking Federation and is a member of the steering committee of the Equator Principles. BBVA is also a member of the Steering Group of the Net Zero Banking Alliance, the Sustainable Finance Working Group of the Institute for International Finance, the Task Force of Voluntary Carbon Markets and the Alliance of CEO Climate Leaders of the World Economic Forum.