Top Management Team

BBVA has appointed José Luis Elechiguerra, current Head of Client Solutions in the United States, as Global Head of Engineering & Organization, replacing Ricardo Forcano who, after a successful decade at BBVA, is leaving the bank to start an academic research project.

Spain was the first stop in the tour BBVA’s new CEO is taking across the different markets where the Group operates.

Onur Genç met with those in charge of BBVA Spain, as well as the different multidisciplinary teams working on the development of next-generation digital products and services. “I was able to see first hand the commitment and dedication of the entire BBVA team in Spain. They are pioneers in many of the projects the Group launches,” he said.

Onur Genç has just been named the next CEO of the BBVA Group. He is excited, beyond happy and somewhat surprised. As the announcement is made public we meet him for a quick chat.

The Board of Directors of BBVA approved the succession plan for the company’s chief executive officer (CEO). Onur Genç, who is currently the CEO of BBVA Compass and U.S. country manager for BBVA, will replace Carlos Torres Vila as Group CEO. The succession is expected to take place on Dec. 31, 2018.

BBVA Compass Chief Risk Officer Javier Hernández has a long history with BBVA, the parent of BBVA Compass, having joined the bank in 1998. Since that time, he’s been through financial up and down swings, as well as watched the dawn of the tech revolution in finance - all of which has given him an unbeatable perspective on the function of risk in such times. He sat down with External Communications to tell us more about his role, the evolution of Risk Management and the impact of digital.

After announcing that he will be stepping down as BBVA Group Executive Chairman, which is set to take place at the end of December, Francisco González granted an interview to Spanish newspaper El Mundo. During the interview he went over his almost 18 year tenure at the helm of the bank, but mostly spoke about the future. Francisco González leaves a bank set for “huge success” in the new digital scenario, managed according to clear principles, by the best possible leader, Carlos Torres Vila.

Garanti Bank CEO Fuat Erbil said the turkish bank’s performance last year far exceeded expectations and looks forward to extending that success this year. “Last year was much more positive than expected, both for the country, the sector and Garanti,” Fuat Erbil told journalists in a recent meeting. “As witnessed by the positive outlook for key indicators and investor interest, 2017 was a successful year for Turkey. The banking sector’s performance excelled expectations as domestic demand increased and economic activity as a whole expanded”.

Onur Genç’s appointment as BBVA Compass CEO and country manager marks the beginning of a new chapter for the BBVA Group’s franchise in the U.S. Genç is ready to take on the challenge of leading the digitization push, at a time when the prospects of rising interest rates could have a profound impact on the future of the industry. BBVA CEO Carlos Torres Vila, in Houston visiting the team at BBVA Compass, joined Genç for this interview. BBVA’s CEO underscored the bank’s commitment to the U.S. market, a region that accounted for 11 percent of the Group’s net attributable profit in 2016.

• Changes: The new executive director compensation policy for the next three years envisages 1) an increase in the amounts to be deferred and the deferral period for the variable compensation. 60% of the variable compensation will be subject to a 5-year deferral period; 2) share-based remuneration increase: 60% of the deferred amount to be paid in BBVA shares, the remaining 40% in cash; and 3) variable compensation to be subject to reduction and clawback clauses
• Group Executive Chairman: Total remuneration of BBVA’s Group Executive Chairman for 2016 was €4.9 million, down 12% from 2015. The Chairman’s variable compensation dropped 18% with respect to 2015, mainly as a result of the impact on BBVA Group’s profit of the provision related to ‘floor clauses’ in Spain and exchange rate trends. The deferred variable remuneration is subject to the retribution policy in force in 2016, with multi-annual indicators based on which said remuneration can be reduced or even taken to zero, never increased, as well as malus clauses that could limit or even prevent its collection
• Chief Executive Officer: CEO Carlos Torres Vila’s remuneration was €4.4 million, and his variable remuneration is also subject to the same deferral period and conditions as that of the Chairman

The Board of Directors has approved a new Executive Director compensation policy for 2017, 2018 and 2019 to adapt to the new regulation related to compensation (Bank of Spain Circular 2/2016 and the European Banking Authority’s guidelines on sound adequate remuneration policies.) This new policy will be submitted for approval in the upcoming Annual General Meeting, on March 17.

BBVA Compass Talent & Culture Executive Rosilyn Houston debuted Monday on American Banker’s 25 Women to Watch list, part of the magazine’s annual Most Powerful Women In Banking series on the industry’s top female executives.

Banks need to catch up and capture the zeitgeist of the digital and sharing economies and put power squarely in the hands of their clients if they want to thrive in today's world, BBVA Compass Chairman and CEO Manolo Sánchez said in a keynote address at American Banker's Digital Banking Conference Tuesday in New Orleans.

Peru has played - and still does - a key role in BBVA's projection and consolidation in South America. In 1995 the institution (still BBV back then) took its first step in its expansion in the region buying Banco Continental. Since then, year after year, Peru has emerged as a solid country with an increasing appeal for international investors.

BBVA Executive Chairman Francisco González, CEO Carlos Torres Vila and other Group executives reviewed the Bank’s strategy in an event followed live by close to 40,000 employees across the different countries in which BBVA operates. The BBVA members that took the stage spoke from four different countries at the event, titled ‘Live @BBVA: Our Strategy,” while the audience was able to interact and discuss a number of topics through an app.

BBVA CEO Carlos Torres Vila said today that the sustainability of the banking business model in the current context of negative interest rates requires a change: To leave behind a money-centric infrastructure, based on revenues generated by interests, and develop a banking model that seeks to make a bigger difference in customers' lives. Speaking during BBVA’s Q1 2016 results presentation, Carlos Torres Vila expressed his conviction that “the more we are capable of offering a distinctive value, the more satisfied customers will be and the more viable and sustainable our business model will be.”

- Quorum was over 62%

- Financial statements approved with support from more than 99% of the votes

Francisco González was re-elected Group Executive Chairman of BBVA, with over 96% of the votes during the Annual General Meeting held today in Bilbao. In 2013 he was re-elected with 90.9% of votes.

It is common knowledge that markets dislike uncertainty. Investor doubts tend to translate into massive sales and sharp drops in capital markets, but presenting a believable message that gives an outlook of growth, or at least stability, can lead to significant gains.

Three Oxford University professors researched the impact of Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) presenting a new strategy on companies’ stock market value. They concluded that most of these statements had a significant impact on stock prices. The effect is even greater for recently appointed CEOs, and even more so if the new CEOs come from outside firms.

BBVA will propose the appointment of Sunir Kapoor and Andrew Stott as new independent board members during its Annual Shareholders’ Meeting. The Meeting will be held in Bilbao on March 11th, 2016, as notified in the Relevant Event containing the agenda and to which this press release is appended.

• Executive Leadership Team
• BBVA South America

• Executive Team
• BBVA América del Sur

BBVA Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Jaime Sáenz de Tejada has been named the best CFO in Europe. There were a total of  100 participants in this category. Likewise, Mr. Sáenz de Tejada has been voted the leading CFO in the European banking sector, out of a total of 93 banks, and first in Spain, a category with 47 participants.

BBVA Bancomer today announced that it has appointed Eduardo Osuna Osuna as its new general manager, replacing Vicente Rodero Rodero, who, since October 1, 2012, has been the vice chairman of the Board of Directors and the bank’s general manager.