Digital sales surge as BBVA expands customer solution offering
Every quarter, BBVA rolls out new products and functionalities, delivering new amazing experiences for its mobile and online customers to enjoy. By year end, the bank expects that about 92% of its current product portfolio will be available on its digital channels in Spain, as well as to be able to continue making progress in its other franchises. BBVA CEO Carlos Torres Vila explained how this effort is having an “impressive impact”, as evidenced by the exponential rate at which digital sales are growing. Digital sales account for about one fourth of the bank’s total, with more than 3.5 million units sold between July and September.
Carlos Torres Vila also mentioned four examples of new BBVA product launches in the last quarter: Bconomy, a tool that measures customers’ financial health and offers custom tailored plans to improve it in Spain, ATM cash withdrawal micro-insurance in Colombia; Tuyyo, a mobile money transfer service that allows sending money between the U.S. and Mexico; and the voice biometric authentication service in Turkey.
Digital sales account for about one fourth of the bank’s total, with more than 3.5 million units sold between July and September"
Thanks to this strategy, BBVA keeps expanding its digital customer base in a “relevant manner.” The bank already has over 21 million digital customers, 24% more than one year ago. And some significant milestones have also been achieved, such as breaking the 50% digital customer penetration mark in five countries: Turkey, U.S. , Argentina, Venezuela and Chile. “In Spain we are inching closer and closer, and we’ll probably cross this threshold in the next quarter,” said Carlos Torres Vila.
BBVA already has almost 16 million mobile customers, with customer-bank interaction rates ever-increasing as more and more services are deployed through this channel.
BBVA CEO Carlos Torres Vila - BBVA
The business impact of the app’s design
Carlos Torres Vila underscored the impact that the mobile banking app is having on the Spanish business. For example, 71% of new consumer loan origination during Q3 was digital. In the year to September, 64% of new consumer loans in Spain originated on digital channels between January and September 2017.
71% of new consumer loan origination during Q3 in Spain was digital"
He also explained that in the weeks following the release of the new redesigned app in Spain – in September – sales increased significantly. Specifically, new credit card applications surged 80%, current account openings 20% and sales of investment funds 50%. This is a “clear example of how design and customer experience drive sales, interactions a commercial productivity.”
Digital transformation boosts efficiency
Carlos Torres Vila underscored the positive impact of the accelerating pace of digital transformation on efficiency. Specifically, the efficiency ratio remained under 50% at 49.6% for the first nine months of the year, a significant drop from the levels from one year ago.
We’re already seeing, quarter after quarter, the tangible results of digital transformation"
According to BBVA’s CEO, “we have a quarter of excellent results, that build on the solid trends recorded on previous quarters, with profit growth driven by recurring revenues, the transformation that is boosting efficiency, positive cost-of-risk trends and solid capital generation.” And he emphasized that “we’re already seeing, quarter after quarter, the tangible results of digital transformation.” In short, “we keep working to create shareholder value.”