Spanish banking giant BBVA announced the official launch of its new, 100% digital bank in Germany on June 26, 2025, marking a significant step in its digital expansion strategy across Europe. This move follows the bank's successful rollout in the Italian market at the end of 2021, where it has already gained the trust of more than 700,000 customers.
Entering Germany, Europe's largest economy, is seen as the next natural step for the bank's digital expansion. BBVA CEO Onur Genç stated, “We're bringing something new to Germany. A banking experience that combines the simplicity and convenience of a fee-free account, typical of digital actors, with the full range of products, reliability, and trust of a universal bank.”
Core Offerings and Features
BBVA Germany aims to attract customers with a compelling value proposition. The bank is offering a fee-free interest-bearing checking account paying three percent for the first 12 months, paid monthly with no conditions. This account comes with a free debit card that offers three percent cashback on all purchases for the first year.
One of the standout security innovations is the launch of cards with no printed data and a dynamic CVV, which generates a unique security code for each transaction to enhance security in digital payments. Customers will have access to around 70,000 ATMs and cash withdrawal points across Germany.
Operating as a fully-licensed bank, it offers German IBAN accounts, covered by the European Deposit Protection scheme for up to €100,000. Services also include instant SEPA transfers, direct debits, and flexible financing solutions like 'Pay&Plan,' which allows customers to split purchases into installments, and one-click personal loans.
Strategy and Competition
BBVA is leveraging the proven performance of its mobile app, recognized as the best digital banking experience in Europe, to underpin its growth strategy. The bank aims to blend the ease of use found in neobanks with the trust and comprehensive product range of an established global bank. Murat Kalkan, Head of Digital Banks at BBVA, explained that “the backing of a fully licensed, European-based global bank with more than 80 million customers will be key to building the trust that German consumers need.”
The move places BBVA in competition with other digital banks in Germany, such as N26 and Revolut, as well as traditional players expanding into the digital space like JPMorgan Chase. BBVA is also an investor in the German fintech Solaris SE (formerly solarisBank), a 'banking-as-a-service' provider that holds a German banking license. This relationship underscores BBVA's deep commitment to the European fintech ecosystem.
To support its customers, BBVA will provide 24/7 customer service in German, along with support in English, combining technological efficiency with a human touch.