Tablets, smartphones, social media… There are an increasing number of channels available for communicating directly with the customer and learning more about them, as well as for customers to convey their message in a more personal way.

More than 2 billion adults are excluded from the formal financial system, according to the Universal Financial Access 2020 report by the World Bank.

The challenge is to ensure that by 2020 adults around the world will have access to a checking account or an electronic service to save their money and send and receive payments. This goal is behind the boom in financial inclusion strategies, which are increasingly making use of technology and the services provided by the so-called technological finance (fintech).

The concept of teamwork is so ingrained in companies and organizations that practically no one dares to question it. Milovan Dragañac [BBVA Peru] thinks there is a better way.

The number of customers who communicate with banks via digital channels goes up every day. Digital transformation is the goal and main challenge faced by large companies; it affects all enterprise areas.

Payments are undergoing a revolution in both the emerging and developed markets. Apple, Facebook, Google and Amazon (the "bad boys" of the technology world) are changing the rules of the game.

Numerous publications have attempted to find out what defines the millennials –the new generation of young people who not only have different values and tastes from their elders, but who are also pioneers in adapting new technologies, and whose uses and customs tend to be copied by older generations. BBVA has conducted a study to find out what they are like and what they really want out of life. It reveals that not only are there are a large number of different types of millennials, but that their preferences vary depending on their country of origin.

Seven UK financial technology start-ups have been named among the finalists in the 2016 BBVA Open Talent European final - the competition, now in its’ eighth year, that looks to support the new businesses that are going to change financial services for the benefit of the consumer and for society.

The U.S. boasts twice as many finalists as any other country in BBVA Open Talent, the Spanish banking giant’s global contest to identify the talent and ideas that are going to transform the world of finance.

The finalists of the 8th edition of the BBVA Open Talent contest were also announced today. They will compete in three separate finals in Mexico, London and New York in September.

Startup Musoni and its microfinance solution won the BBVA Open Talent 2016 special Financial Award. Musoni has developed a system that leverages technology to help financial institutions optimize their microfinance services, boost efficiency, improve cost-effectiveness and broaden their reach in rural areas where most of the population remains unbanked.

In August, the whole world will turn its eyes to Brazil, and not only because of sporting events that will be taking place. The country’s security, facilities, resources and problem-solving skills will be held to close scrutiny, especially in its position as emerging economy in the midst of a profound political and economic crisis.