Bankinter is engaged in responsible banking from multiple planes of action, among them, a strict control of risks in all fields of banking and a firm commitment towards sustainability. It is worth noting the achievements reached in financing accessibility, making Bankinter a bank without material or technological barriers. The bank's commitment towards sustainability is materialised through the projects carried out by the Bankinter Innovation Foundation: FutureTrends Forum, Akademia and Entrepreneurs.
Bankinter has historically had the lowest index of non-performing assets in the Spanish banking system, and one of lowest in Europe. And for this reason it applies a very rigorous risk control policy, which is the house brand. All financing requests are analysed conscientiously, although with no unnecessary delays, because customers usually need a reply in the shortest time possible.
This policy, which has created a school, is undertaken using very advanced technology and predictive models, managed by highly qualified staff, that look for a quality risk; i.e., simultaneously profitable and creditworthy. This is why Bankinter has an equilibrated balance sheet and recurring, healthy results that maximise the company's long-term value.
Naturally, Bankinter understands that its mission is to support its customers' projects, be they personal or business. But without stopping calibrating, with all means at its disposal, the risk it is prepared to take on to achieve a determined return on each asset operation presented.
After all, the key to risk management is to calculate the probability of recovering any money lent, for which it is necessary to undertake a detailed study of investment opportunities, the customer profile, and behaviour patterns followed in previous comparable situations.
Managing this issue not only consists of discerning how far the bank goes on a case-by-case basis, but also includes a regular follow-up of the diversification of risks by sectors, physical location, guarantees, customers and counterparties, and very demanding maximum concentrations.
When dealing with people looking for occasional support, Bankinter prioritises customers they already have a relationship with; i.e., long-term, who can give and receive profits from the bank over a broad time frame. And with whom, sooner rather than later, they will have a bond of trust based on knowledge.
Which is why, concerned with individuals and benefiting from the stabilisation of the mortgage market, Bankinter has launched campaigns specific to financing housing, most notably in the urban areas where most of its activity is concentrated, always within the high quality credit parameters that characterise the bank. The consequent increased investment, together with a reduction in the doubtful balance accounts, has allowed a further decrease in the already low non-performing assets index.
An index of non-performing mortgage assets that has made Bankinter a benchmark and which is the result of very strict credit-granting criteria. No mortgage may exceed 80% of the value of the property and these are inspected with a magnifying glass to determine the true economic effort the customer must make to pay back the money within the time and conditions negotiated.
Bankinter applies the most prudent criteria when accepting property development operations and exclusively selects those backed by stable companies, with a good history throughout the years of profound crisis this sector has experienced.
During the 1990s and beginnings of this century, Bankinter was immersed in a process of constant innovation. In this spirit, in 2003, Bankinter decided to create a different foundation to those which were usual in the European financial system, different both in its mission and its management model, with the desire to contribute to the creation of sustainable wealth in Spain via innovation and enterprise. This is the Bankinter Foundation for Innovation, which in its twelve years of life has become a benchmark, not only in our country, but also internationally.
The first project the foundation launched was the Future Trends Forum (FTF), a think tank that twice a year brings together top-level scientists and intellectuals, whose mission is to detect socioeconomic and technological trends, consider their possible impacts, and translate the results of this research to companies, in order to influence their attitude to innovation.
More than 400 famous people from all over the world have already collaborated with the FTF, tackling matters like the Internet of Things, cloud computing, social technologies, nanotechnology, personalised medicine, mobile technologies, and even others of an openly economic or social nature, such as globalisation, unemployment, entrepreneurship and twenty-first century education.
In 2015, the FTF was recognised for the second consecutive year as the best Science and Technology Think Tank in Spain (25th worldwide) by the Global Go-To Think Tank Index which is drawn up annually at the University of Pennsylvania.
All the Foundation's other projects stem from, and are sustained by, this project:
Through all these initiatives, the Bankinter Foundation for Innovation tries to cover all the main innovation perspectives: knowledge, promotion, education, and support for entrepreneurship, which in turn generate new knowledge; closing the virtuous circle of wealth creation.
Bringing the bank closer to the people, regardless of their skills and the channel they use to communicate with Bankinter, has been one of the keystones of the social arm of the Noughts and Crosses sustainability plan (Tres en Raya in Spanish). Its main project “A bank for everyone ”, which has been up and running for more than ten years, has enabled the level of accessibility offered through its channels and services, developed in accordance with the highest recognised standards in the market in this area.
All of this keeping in mind not only people with disabilities, but also a growing group of over 65s who may develop sensory and motor limitations.
Inclusive strategies, in which Bankinter has been a pioneer, include the management of physical accessibility, eliminating obstacles and architectural barriers in the network of branches; digital accessibility, both of the software and hardware used; and cognitive accessibility, involving the use of comprehensible language.
The first accessible branch was opened to the public in 2005 in the Fundación ONCE building, and was a true novelty in the sector. From the start, it had all the facilities necessary to attend people with any type of disability.
After this experience, it was added to the project for the rest of the network, through corresponding renovations. The door opening system was modified, passable spaces were created to improve interior circulation, ground-level differences were eliminated, and furniture was acquired that had no edges and sharp points. These improvements were very favourably received by both clients and employees.
Currently 99% of the company's branches are accessible for people with reduced mobility, and it should be pointed out that Bankinter was the first Spanish bank to certify offices in terms of accessibility, extending this to the headquarters and eight branches.
With regard to digital accessibility, bankinter.com was the first financial web portal to achieve the European website accessibility certification ‘Euracert’, which since that time, has been renewed year after year. And it was the first company to offer an innovative “Sign Language Videocall” service through which financial advisers attend deaf people in this language, making it far from a mere translation service.
The commitment to accessibility is extended to other groups, and in 2014 in the National Hospital for Paraplegics in Toledo, Bankinter launched the Adaptative project, providing the most advanced technological devices for patients with spinal cord injury, for their rehabilitation and online training. Highlights of this equipment include adapted trackball mice, wireless receivers, systems for high definition video conferencing, digital whiteboards, and high-end tablets adapted to eye-tracking equipment.
The company's sustainability plan also includes the project “A Bank for All”, an economic strategy based on supporting entrepreneurship, and an environmental focus for which we join the fight against climate change. This plan is promoted by the Sustainability Committee, which includes representatives from different areas within the bank and is fronted by the company's Chairman.
