BBVA Compass expands its BBVA Momentum accelerator program for social entrepreneurs to bank's seven-state footprint for 2018

Interested social entrepreneurs across the bank's seven-state Sunbelt footprint — Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, New Mexico and Texas — should go to www.momentum.bbva.com/en/ to view the official rules and to register and apply by May 7.*

BBVA Momentum has been operating since 2011 in other countries throughout the global footprint of BBVA, the Madrid-based bank, but 2017 marked its first foray into the U.S. Twenty entrepreneurs, all based in Texas, were chosen for the initial pilot.

"We are opening up BBVA Momentum to our entire footprint this year after such a successful first year here in the U.S.," said BBVA Compass Corporate Responsibility & Reputation Director Reymundo Ocañas. "BBVA Momentum is a force multiplier. With the training the social entrepreneurs get, the networking and the increased visibility, we're creating opportunities for them to extend their impact and influence on their communities."

Since 2011, nearly 200 entrepreneurs have participated in BBVA Momentum. The program has driven the expansion of companies with high social impact in Spain, Mexico, Peru, Turkey and the United States. Jointly, they employ thousands of people and their activities have benefited more than a million people.

A comprehensive approach

BBVA Momentum's goal is to help social entrepreneurs scale up and make a positive impact on the lives of more people. Last year, over several months, participants in the BBVA Momentum Class of 2017 were given access to online and in-person training, strategic support, networking opportunities and visibility. And finally, BBVA Compass selected those businesses considered most sustainable and with the highest social impact for further investment opportunities.

Chad Houser of Dallas-based Café Momentum, a restaurant training platform for juvenile offenders, won the top prize of $50,000.

"BBVA Momentum creates an incredible foundation for social entrepreneurs," Houser said. "It's more than the $50,000. The human capital that's invested gives you the opportunity to create a higher return investment. For Café Momentum, it means we're going to be able to significantly increase our hours of influence and hours of impact with our kids, making this program that much stronger."

Training from top-notch educators

Educators at the University of Texas at Austin's McCombs School of Business, one of the nation's most prestigious, led the in-person training at the AT&T Executive Education & Conference Center in Austin. They gave the social entrepreneurs their undivided attention over three separate multi-day training sessions, covering down-in-the-trenches topics on financial planning, marketing, and how to pitch investors, among other things.

In December, the participants brought all of their learning to bear and pitched their businesses to a panel of judges — entrepreneurs, UT-Austin McCombs School of Business educators and BBVA Compass executives — and those considered the most sustainable and with the highest social impact received cash awards. In addition to Houser's $50,000 prize, Margo Baines of Houston-based Chicks With Class was awarded $25,000 for second place, while Andy Lovley of Dallas-based Education Opens Doors received $5,000 for third.

* NO PURCHASE OR OBLIGATION NECESSARY TO APPLY OR BE SELECTED. A PURCHASE WILL NOT INCREASE YOUR CHANCES OF SELECTION.

To learn more about BBVA Compass, visit: www.bbvacompass.com

For more news visit: www.bbva.com and newsroom.bbvacompass.com

About BBVA Group
BBVA (NYSE: BBVA) is a customer-centric global financial services group founded in 1857. The Group has a strong leadership position in the Spanish market, is the largest financial institution in Mexico, it has leading franchises in South America and the Sunbelt Region of the United States; and it is also the leading shareholder in Garanti, Turkey's biggest bank for market capitalization. Its diversified business is focused on high-growth markets and it relies on technology as a key sustainable competitive advantage. Corporate responsibility is at the core of its business model. BBVA fosters financial education and inclusion, and supports scientific research and culture. It operates with the highest integrity, a long-term vision and applies the best practices. More information about BBVA Group can be found at bbva.com.

About BBVA Compass
BBVA Compass is a Sunbelt-based financial institution that operates 649 branches, including 336 in Texas, 89 in Alabama, 63 in Arizona, 61 in California, 45 in Florida, 37 in Colorado and 18 in New Mexico. BBVA Compass ranks among the top 25 largest U.S. commercial banks based on deposit market share and ranks among the largest banks in Alabama (2nd), Texas (4th) and Arizona (6th). BBVA Compass has been recognized as one of the leading small business lenders by the Small Business Administration (SBA) and ranked 6th nationally in the total number of SBA loans originated in fiscal year 2017. Additional information about BBVA Compass can be found at www.bbvacompass.com. For more BBVA Compass news, follow @BBVACompassNews on Twitter or visit newsroom.bbvacompass.com.

SOURCE BBVA Compass

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