Sustainability

Seray İmer, Head of Sustainability at Garanti BBVA, recently took part in a ‘Sustainable Future’ show on Bloomberg HT TV, where she outlined Garanti BBVA’s key commitments and targets for a less polluted world.

“BBVA is a great ally for Spanish companies as they take on their sustainable transition and international expansion,” remarked Javier Rodríguez Soler, Global Head of Sustainability and CIB at BBVA. His presentation was part of the 41st Seminar organized by Spanish financial press association APIE and titled ‘The role of businesses in the new economy’, being held in Santander. “At BBVA, we support and accompany our clients, and not only multinational firms, but also those companies that need more specific advice to help them continue to grow,” he said.

Garanti BBVA announced the renewal of its sustainable syndicated loan. The bank plans to use the loan to finance foreign trade, for general corporate purposes, and to further its commitment to finance investments that support the transition to a low carbon economy.   Indexed to sustainable criteria, Garanti BBVA was the first bank in the world to launch a syndicated sustainable loan in 2020.

BBVA will issue a total amount of $50 million and the resources will be used to  finance projects focusing on reforestation, the regeneration of natural forests on degraded land, mangrove conservation or restoration, climate-smart agriculture, and wildlife habitat restoration, among others.

BBVA has received the 'Alcance 3.0' award for the 'Best Comprehensive Scope 3 Emissions Reduction Strategy'. This award, presented by the CPOnet Group, recognizes the efforts of organizations that help reduce emissions in their value chain: suppliers, customers, employees, partners, shareholders and society.

The challenge of diversity is one of the key transformation pillars for any company. In the case of BBVA, ensuring a diverse workplace, in the broadest sense of the term, allows the company to better address the needs of its diverse customer base and offer a more comprehensive service.

BBVA is expanding its intermediate emission reduction targets for 2030 to two new sectors: the real estate sector in Spain and the global aluminum industry. They join the list of targets for eight emission-intensive sectors previously set by the bank (oil & gas; power generation; automobile; steel; cement; coal; aviation and shipping).

BBVA's decarbonization targets: What do they mean and what is their scope?

Wind turbines in hard-to-reach areas or solar panels located in large semi-desert regions. How do we monitor these facilities without having to move human teams to remote areas?

Garanti BBVA recently held its fifth ‘Sustainable Future in Exports’ meeting in Adana, Türkiye, a hub for Turkish exports. The bank is organizing the series of meetings to encourage foreign investment in the country and boost Türkiye’s export sector in the framework of the European Green Deal.  The event brought together renowned leaders and experts in the field who offered their economic analysis and insights on possible sustainable solutions.

“In recent years, we have been increasing our business in key sectors while reducing their emissions,” said the Global Head of Sustainability and CIB at BBVA, Javier Rodríguez Soler. “We set decarbonization targets for eight key sectors and are reducing the absolute and relative emissions of these sectors. And we are doing so while increasing our financing business with these clients,” he stated at the Institute of International Finance (IIF) European Summit in Paris.

The new Salt exhibition, ‘Hava Dair’ (About the Air)  aims to give life to the social and environmental aspects of air pollution through a series of different experiments. The exhibition, which is sponsored by Garanti BBVA, was designed by the Milan-based design studio 2050+ for Salt's Beyoğlu location. It can be visited free of charge until August 18th.

Antoni Ballabriga, Global Head of Sustainability Intelligence & Advocacy at BBVA and member of the EU High-Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Scaling Up Sustainable Finance in Low and Middle-income Countries, explains the key findings and recommendations that the HLEG will submit to the European Commission.

Garanti BBVA International, a Garanti BBVA subsidiary known for its ongoing sustainable financing initiatives, has reached an agreement with Kordsa Teknik Tekstil A.Ş. (Kordsa) for a $50 million sustainable loan.

BBVA mobilized €20 billion in sustainable business in the first quarter of 2024, up 41 percent on the same period last year. The bank is now ahead of the curve in achieving its goal of mobilizing €300 billion between 2018 and 2025, having already reached €226 billion. Of this figure, 77 percent will go toward combating climate change and 23 percent to promoting inclusive growth.

Clean technologies, also known as 'cleantech', are technologies that contribute to sustainability and care for the environment. This includes emissions reduction, biodiversity protection and water treatment.

The BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in the Humanities and Social Sciences category goes to American psychologist Elke Weber in recognition of her research into “environmental decision-making and human responses to climate change.” Weber was the first psychologist to join the IPCC, a group of experts to which she brought her knowledge of decision-making theory.

Once again, BBVA has been busy promoting sustainability training among 418 of its suppliers and SME customers across 13 countries in which it operates. A total of 552 people will soon be taking part in the UN Global Compact Sustainable Suppliers Training Programme, of whom 59% (326) are women.

BBVA Chair Carlos Torres Vila spoke on Monday on Spain's opportunity to lead investment in the clean technologies required for the decarbonization of the economy. In his view, if the implementation of the EU Net-Zero Industry Act is ambitious in Spain, the country’s leading innovative companies will be able to invest in cleantech and place it in a better position compared to its European peers.

“Decarbonization is a technological revolution that requires innovation and financing. Its scope is global and it will affect all industries and sectors,” said Antonio Bravo, Global Head of Sustainability Strategy and CIB at BBVA. In the framework of the Energy Tech Summit, which ended yesterday in Bilbao, Bravo emphasized “the key role” of financing new clean technologies. “BBVA is committed to financing cleantech to facilitate its growth on an industrial scale,” he stressed.

In 2023, 96 percent of power consumption at BBVA Group facilities came from renewable sources, well above the 70 percent target set for 2025. In Spain, Portugal, Colombia, Uruguay, Mexico, Peru and Türkiye, 100 percent of the bank’s power usage comes from clean energy sources.

BBVA ‘Aprendemos juntos 2030’ is debuting the second season of ‘Desafios’ (Challenges), the program in which Generation Z talks about its challenges. In the seven years since it was launched, the global project has surpassed three billion views and has over eight million followers.

For the fourth consecutive year, on the occasion of its Annual General Meeting (AGM), the bank will donate €300,000 to social non-profits active in four areas related to the environment and inclusive growth. Asociación Talismán, Fundación Emet, Asociación Puente de Esperanza Madrid and Fundación Madre Coraje were the chosen candidates 2024.