The digital economy contributed 22.6% to Spanish GDP in 2022, with cumulative growth of over 20% in the last three years according to Adigital and Boston Consulting Group (BCG).
This dynamism reflects the changes observed in the Spanish economy and society, where the use of digital channels to acquire products and access public and private services is increasingly common. An innovative process in which the banking sector actively collaborates.
Innovation is the most effective response to humanity’s greatest challenges because it improves our quality of life. The most evident example was the unprecedented digital drive to overcome the lockdown resulting from the pandemic. A collective effort to continue working and interacting in a digital environment that is now part of our present and enables us to advance toward the future.
The economy functioned during the pandemic, among other reasons, because Spanish banks had anticipated the digital transformation from which we can all now benefit.
Adaptation and innovation reside in the DNA of banks. According to Deloitte’s “Digital Banking Maturity” Report, Spanish banks lead the global ranking for digital maturity in customer experience. According to our data, 71% of customers are digital, of which 90% access their bank through mobile devices.
The report comprehensively evaluates the digital channels of banking and fosters debate on the trends that will shape the future. That future of a large portion of financial institutions worldwide is offered today by Spanish banks, and a significant example of this is the Bizum payment application, developed in Spain and serving as an international benchmark.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) advocates for a more digital society as a prelude to greater economic growth and prosperity that will help combat inequality, an idea called ‘the inclusive revolution,’ especially in emerging countries. In more advanced countries, digitalization represents an opportunity to grow more and better through new opportunities discovered daily that improve our quality of life.
Banking penetration and digitalization go hand in hand. The former is the use that society, businesses, families, and public administrations make of banking products and services. It also represents the intensity and impact of the banking network, considering the different existing communication channels, because banks are part of all important economic decisions, such as purchasing a home for families, obtaining financing for businesses, and managing financial services such as bills and direct debits, or collaborating with the administration in tax management, among others. Also, the use of an efficient payment system integrated into everyday life. In short, a society without sustainable finance would be an impoverished and archaic society.
It is true that the speed of change we are witnessing can be dizzying. Today’s increasingly digital society demands constant innovation to respond to new and ongoing challenges.
Artificial intelligence, the changing profiles of jobs that will be demanded in the future, and the need to ensure that no one is left out of the benefits it brings are some of the ingredients of this equation. Digitalization must not exclude anyone, regardless of personal or social circumstances, and since banks are aware of this fact, they have implemented measures to address these issues, such as strengthening personalized service for the elderly or financial inclusion in rural areas, under the firm commitment to provide the best possible service to everyone, everywhere.
The UN established World Information Society and Telecommunications Day on May 17 to promote the proper use and disseminate the enormous benefits that the internet and digital technologies provide for all people. In Spain, this year we have focused on Digital Citizenship, in order to extract the best from digitalization and adapt it to our demands and needs. Although it requires an initial adaptation effort, it is a very low cost compared to the advantages and benefits it already provides us in our daily lives.
José Luis Martínez Campuzano, spokesperson for the Spanish Banking Association
