“We are a larger and stronger bank than a year ago, capable of delivering better results to our shareholders, and having a greater impact on society.” Euphoria oozed in the words that Carlos Torres Vila, president of BBVA, conveyed this Friday to the shareholders present at the General Meeting that the entity held in Bilbao.
The CEO, Onur Genç, has not been left behind. “Ladies and gentlemen shareholders, 2023 has been a great year for BBVA, and we believe that 2024 will be even better,” he assured.
The numbers justify their euphoria. In the financial field, in 2023 BBVA recorded the highest profit in its entire history, 8,019 million euros, despite the Government's extraordinary tax on banks. The attributable result increased by 26% and the earnings per share grew, “an impressive 32%”, as Torres described it, driven by the share repurchases carried out during the year.
Numbers that both managers hope to improve during 2024. Despite the “uncertainty” derived from tensions in the Middle East and Ukraine, elections in various countries and inflation above the central banks' objectives, Torres Vila trusts in the resilience of the Spanish economy.
“It will continue to grow well above the European average in 2024, we estimate 2.1% compared to 0.7% in the eurozone,” he assured.
The lower demand in the eurozone, the need for fiscal adjustment and interest rates that are still at relatively high levels have been identified as the main weakness of the Spanish economy. On the other hand, Torres has highlighted the strength of employment and consumption, the contribution of exports, as well as greater dynamism in investment, given the expectation of lower interest rates and the deployment of European funds.
BBVA hopes to take advantage of this internal trend to continue improving its results in 2024. “In the financial sector, the gradual normalization of interest rates will help banking activity continue to grow,” the president assured. Along the same lines, the CEO, Onur Genç, has committed to improvement. “We hope to beat all the objectives for 2024 that we set at our Investor Day, held in 2021,” he assured the shareholders present this Friday in Bilbao. .
The challenge is not easy. In 2023, the bank's retail business registered an increase of 43%, its corporate business grew by 99% and its corporate business grew by 20%. In 2023, BBVA added more than 11 million new clients and increased its loan portfolio by 7.6%.
Both managers have highlighted that this good evolution of the business has been very well received in the markets. In 2023, BBVA's share appreciated by 89%.
A benefit of which shareholders will receive 50%. Specifically, BBVA is going to distribute 4,000 million euros in dividends. “In terms of earnings per share, it represents a growth of 32%. We have done much better than our competition,” said Torres.
Some data that has served the president not only to take advantage of his management, but also to vindicate the role of banking in society, weighed down for so many years by crises. “Banks play a fundamental role in society, providing an essential service. “We promote economic growth, channeling savings towards productive investment,” he assured.
To do this, it has resorted to a reference data: “In the last 40 years, and despite the great financial crisis of more than a decade ago, we estimate that the credit granted by banks in Spain has increased GDP per capita by more than 20%, with also very positive impacts on productivity per hour worked, on investment, and on private consumption,” Torres emphasized after shareholders were able to watch a video praising the role of banking in society, so reviled since the beginning. beginning of the 2008 crisis.
