BBVA is divided into three kinds of areas and units: Business, Support and the Chairman’s Office. The first two are the direct responsibility of the president (COO) and the third come sunder the chairman (CEO). The business units are defined as "value-creation centres" with direct responsibility for market approach, growth and their own income statement. This is part of the empowerment plan for business units and part of BBVA´s corporate culture.

The purpose of this structure is to help the Group develop on three fronts:

   1. To facilitate the creation of business units that are more capable of operating and taking decisions in an autonomous manner. They are responsible for their own growth strategy within the strategic parameters set by the Group.

   2. To boost Customer Outreach. Transformation and innovation are the tools that will provide more people in more markets, with more appropiate and more profitable solutions.

   3. To create a management structure that allows every unit to maximise the advantages of being part of a global group with a first-class brand and highly diversified risk, soundly based, profitable and efficient.

1. Business in Spain and Portugal: comprises the retail banking business and company & business banking (CBB) in these countries. It covers all business with private individuals, small and mid-size enterprises (SMEs), other companies and institutions, consumer finance, insurance (Seguros Europa) and BBVA Portugal.

Business in Spain and Portugal includes:

• Commercial banking and company & business banking
• Innovation and business development
• Consumer finance
• Insurance Europe
• BBVA Portugal
• Transformation and productivity 

2. Wholesale Businesses:  is an area of great importance from the point of view of growth and expansion in new parts of the world and for new Group activities at international level. It comprises all market and global customer activities in Europe, the Americas and Asia, as well as business and real estate projects, and investment banking.

This area includes:

• Global Markets and Distribution
• Asset management and private banking 
• Global customers Europe
• Global customers in the Americas
• Asia
• Business and real estate projects
• Investment banking 

3. Mexico: is one of the Group´s main areas of growth, includes the banking,insurance and pension businesss in Mexico.

4. South America: covers the activity and results of the Gorup´s subsidiaries in this region and their subsidiary undertakings, including pension-fund managers, insurance companies and the international private banking business.

5. USA:  In 2005 and 2006, BBVA began to take decisive steps to build a presence in the U.S. with the purchase of Laredo National Bank, Texas State Bank and State National Bank, three banks in Texas. On September 7, 2007, BBVA successfully completed the acquisition of Compass Bank, the largest transaction in the 150 year history of the BBVA Group. As a result of combining Compass Bank with the three previously acquired Texas banks, BBVA has become a leading financial institution in the U.S. Sunbelt region.

The Finance, the Risk and the Innovation & Development  areas are different to the business units above but they are part of this section because they contribute directly to the creation of value for the Group.