BBVA’s president, Carlos Torres Vila, expressed confidence that 2024 would be a step up from 2023, which he termed a historic year with the bank delivering its best results to date. He emphasized that the market recognizes the bank’s strengths and that its ability to combine growth with profitability sets BBVA apart from competitors. He noted, today the bank is larger and stronger than a year ago.
Torres spoke in Bilbao during the General Shareholders’ Meeting held this Friday at the Euskalduna Palace.
He highlighted that 2023 was a great year for the institution, where value was created for customers, employees, shareholders, and society as a whole. Looking ahead, he expects 2024 to surpass the previous year.
In reviewing the past year, Torres pointed out that more than 11 million new customers joined BBVA and lending increased by nearly 8%. He added that funding for families and businesses represents the bank’s largest contribution to the progress of the communities where BBVA operates.
Moreover, he stated that 2023 was a historic year with record results, reporting 8.019 billion euros in profit, and that the bank leads Europe in profitability and efficiency.
He noted that the market recognizes BBVA’s strengths. He added that the bank’s ability to combine growth and profitability differentiates BBVA from its competitors.
He also stated that the bank creates more value than ever for shareholders, citing an 81% rise in the share price since January 2023 and the distribution of more than 4.0 billion euros, which represented about half of 2023’s profit to shareholders as planned at the Bilbao meeting.
He concluded that today BBVA is a larger and stronger bank than a year ago, capable of delivering better results to shareholders and having a greater impact on society. He attributed this to the bank’s strengths, its strategy focused on innovation and sustainability, and the commitment of the entire team, expressing belief that 2024 would be even stronger than 2023.
Ratio of profitability in 17%
The chief executive officer of BBVA, Onur Genç, indicated that the bank must avoid complacency despite the favorable business outlook for the year ahead.
He stated, we have a lot of work to do. Competitors are very strong in all the markets where BBVA operates, but as has been seen, the company’s performance against competition has been exceptional. He noted that 2023 was a strong year for BBVA, and he believes 2024 will be even better. He added that a projected rise in attributed earnings for the year would help lift the profitability ratio above 17% and keep the efficiency ratio below 42%.
In this vein, the bank’s top executive highlighted robust loan growth and the improvement in profitability ratios as signs of continued momentum.