Today, practically everyone has a bank account. This is linked to a bank, or a bank, which is responsible for ensuring that your account is protected and that the money in it continues to be at your disposal for whatever you need.
However, What else do you know about the bank? Do you know the different types of entities? Or all the services they can offer? That, and much more, is what we are going to talk about next.
What is a bank
A banking entity is better known by its common name, bank, although it may have other names such as credit institution or depository institution. It is a financial company that deals with offering financial services to customers, such as loans, credits ... As well as taking care of keeping the money that is deposited in them by customers safe.
The objective of the bank is to manage the clients' money in such a way that it also uses it to lend it to others.
What does a bank do?
Roughly speaking, a bank has two types of activities:
- Passive operations. Corresponding to attracting money from people or institutions, companies, organizations, etc.
- asset operations. And it is that they are in charge of lending that money that they have captured to third parties, always at a higher cost, to obtain a profit for carrying out that transaction and, also, for the risk they run.
Liability operations
If we break down a little more liability operations of a bank, you will see that it refers to attracting customers and, with them, resources. This category is where bank accounts, savings accounts, bank cards, long-term deposits come in ...
In other words, we talk about those services offered to customers that involve leaving a certain amount of money lodged in the bank. This will always be available to customers, who can withdraw it whenever they want. But, meanwhile, it is part of the liquidity that the bank has to lend money to a third person (which would be active operations).
asset operations
As we have already mentioned, it refers to activities related to money lending. That is, they try to move money by lending it to other people and obtaining a series of benefits for doing so.
This type of operation would include, for example, credits and lines of credit, loans, mortgages... With them, what they do is give money to whoever needs it in exchange for interest paid by the person who needs that capital, which is what the bank itself gains in managing this process and assuming the risk for that person to return the money they have received.
Types of banking entities
Now let's get to know the different types of banking entities. And it is that, although you do not believe it, banks as you know them are not the only ones that fall within this concept, but there is much more.
Thus, you may find the following:
Retail banking
This type of bank is the most common, and the one you know very well. In fact, your payroll, pension, or income ends up in such a bank account. These are entities where customers are private individuals.
More specifically, they are those banks where you can open a bank account, request loans or credits, etc. They operate only for individuals, although there are also services for freelancers and companies (although the latter often choose another type of bank).
Company banking
In this case, and as we told you before, it is a type of banking entity focused on companies. Although they may have the same services as in retail banking, they also have another catalog of services related to companies such as payroll, mass transfers, virtual POS to sell online, etc.
In other words, everything that companies need from a bank to be able to operate and carry out transactions, either with their clients or with their workers.
Private banking
Private banking is part of retail banking. However, focuses on a more specific part: those people who have a great wealth or a fortune. In this case we can say that they are banks that offer special treatment to their richest clients, and, as such, they take care of them.
The services they offer to clients may be the same as to individuals but, due to being “special”, they offer other types of more succulent and beneficial conditions for them, either with less commissions, with greater profitability, etc.
investment banking
Also known as business banking, it is the one that is responsible for serving legal entities and administrations in the needs they have, especially related to investment. For example, mergers, acquisitions, investment in other businesses, etc.
Banking entities in Spain
Now that you know better what a bank is and especially the types and what is done in them, it is time for you to know What are the banks that exist in Spain?. In this way, you will not only know the offer that there is, but you will see that there are many more banks than you can know because they are heard a lot, they are large or they even advertise a lot.
Specifically, we talk about the following:
A&G Private Banking
- Abanca Banking Corporation
- ActiveBank
- archia
- Bank March
- Pueyo Bank
- BBVA
- Caixa Geral Bank
- The Roads Bank
- Cetelem Bank
- Spanish Cooperative Bank
- The Bank of Albacete
- Banco de Caja de España investment Salamanca and Soria
- Bank of Castilla-La Mancha
- The cooperative social credit bank
- deposit bank
- Depositary bank BBVA
- The Bank of Madrid
- Banco Sabadell
- European Bank of Finance
- Finantia Sofinloc Bank
- Bilbao industrial bank
- investment bank
- The Mare Nostrum Bank
- Mediolanum Bank
- western bank
- The Shepherd Bank
- Bank Pichincha Spain
- Spanish Popular Bank
- Santander Bank
- Urquijo Bank
- bancofar
- Bancopopular-e
- bankruptcy
- Bankia
- Bankinter
- bankoa
- bantierra
- BBVA bank financing
- Caixabank
- Savings bank and MP of Ontinyent
- Catalunya Bank (Catalunya Caixa)
- cecabank
- Colonya-Caixa d'estalvis de Pollensa
- Deixa Sabadell
- EBN Business Bank
- Evo Bank
- Ibercaja Bank
- kutxabank
- Liberbank
- New Microbank
- novanca
- Openbank
- popular private banking
- promobank
- Rent 4 Bank
- Sa Nostra
- Santander Consumer Finance
- Santander Investment
- Santander Securities Services
- Self Trade Bank
- targobank
- Unicaja Bank
- Unoe bank
Foreign banking entities operating in Spain
In this case, and if you do not like any bank entity in Spain, or you are a business person who travels the world, it is possible that it is much better for you to have one. account in a foreign or international bank. In Spain you have two types: on the one hand, those that have offices in Spain and that operate in the country, which is the list that we are going to give you below; on the other hand, you have more banks that operate without having an established office, but do so virtually.
The list of foreign banking entities that operate in Spain is as follows:
- AKF Bank GMBH & Co KG
- allfunds bank
- Andbank Spain
- Arab bank
- AresBank
- Alcala Bank
- Lavoro National Bank
- Pichincha Bank
- Banque Marocaine Commerce Exterior
- BNP Paribas
- Citibank
- Cut Cousors
- Deutsche Bank
- ICBC Luxembourg
- ING Direct
- Novobank
- Private Bank Degroof
- RBC Investor Services
- ScaniaBank
- Triodos Bank
- UBS Bank
- Volkswagen