Spanish bank BBVA is experimenting in the metaverse to offer banking services based on Virtual Reality (VR).
Until today, attendees at the South Summit event, which is taking place in the city of Madrid, will be able to enjoy a completely digital interaction with the bank, which is exploring the potential of the Metaverse to revolutionize the way it serves its customers.
BBVA has set aside a virtual space at South Summit, where people can enjoy a dynamic and immersive customer service experience in the Metaverse.
To do this, all you need to do is put on the virtual reality glasses at the BBVA stand to be assisted by a virtual manager, with whom you can interact remotely "as if you were face to face in an office," the bank said in a statement. release.
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In this digital experience, the Spanish bank's managers can offer products to their clients, while they watch informative videos. It is also possible for users to consult their accounts and banking transactions privately, while interacting with the manager.
The Metaverse, part of BBVA's innovation strategy
BBVA's Head of Banking for Growth Companies, Roberto Albaladejo, explained that the current tests will help the bank understand what it can do in the Metaverse.
“We want to learn about this new technology first-hand to understand its capabilities and where the ways of interacting with customers based on virtual reality can evolve.”, Albaladejo commented, explaining that the Metaverse is a fundamental part of its open innovation strategy to explore new technologies.
The Spanish bank has also been immersed in the study and adoption of emerging technologies such as blockchain and cryptocurrencies for years, being one of the first banks in Europe and the world to offer financial services based on crypto assets to its clients.
A year ago, BBVA's subsidiary in Switzerland enabled Bitcoin trading and custody services. Later, in September, it created a special account so that its clients could invest in cryptocurrencies and then extended its trading services to other cryptoassets, such as Ethereum.
BBVA is interested in decentralized finance
DeFi innovation has also captured BBVA's interest.
In March of this year, BBVA Chairman Carlos Torres published a article on Decentralized Finance. In it, he noted that this emerging ecosystem, born from the blockchain, seems to be “predestined to change the current financial system.”
Torres said that the rise of DeFi is driven by its ability to allow anyone to access banking and financial services in a decentralized way. He pointed out that, although the financial sector is currently the one that is adapting the most to this ecosystem, the decentralization and programmability of smart contracts will extend to other sectors of activity, to open up new opportunities.
More banks enter the Metaverse
The Metaverse has become a world full of new opportunities and possibilities for users and companies in different sectors, such as banking.
Currently, other banks that are experimenting with the Metaverse are the bank Santander, also of Spanish origin; the British bank HSBC, which opened a virtual headquarters on the blockchain platform The Sandbox and launched a fund dedicated to this digital innovation in March of this year; Citibank, which announced its interest in an open, community-governed metaverse; and JP Morgan, one of the oldest banking and financial services companies in the world.
Last February, JP Morgan became the first major bank to open headquarters in the Metaverse, choosing the popular blockchain platform Decentraland for that.
More recently, the Caixabank announced a alianza with Microsoft for the development of immersive virtual environments, based on Artificial Intelligence, where the Spanish bank's clients and employees will be able to interact with each other.
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