HOUSTON, Oct. 2, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Community bankers and other financial leaders learned more about what regulations and global economic issues mean to their institutions during the annual BBVA Compass Correspondent Banking Executive Management Seminar held this week in San Francisco.

"We decided to host this year's seminar in the Bay Area, where our parent company has invested in several financial services startup companies," said Bob Freeman, head of Correspondent Banking for BBVA Compass. "During the seminar, our attendees heard about the latest breakthroughs in mobile payments and the future of the banking industry from our tech-savvy speakers."

Influential leaders who spoke at the seminar included Brett King, the author of "Bank 2.0: How Customer Behavior and Technology Will Change the Future of Financial Services" and "Bank 3.0: Why Banking is No Longer Somewhere You Go, But Something You Do." Norman Winarsky,vice president of ventures at research institute SRI International, spoke about disruptive innovations in banking, and Nathaniel Karp, BBVA Compass' chief economist, delivered his global economic forecast.

The week-long annual event draws financial firm presidents, CEOs, directors and other executives eager to hear some of the world's most respected authorities on domestic and international banking, the economy, empowerment, management skills, and international trade and finance. Seminar sessions focus on improving profitability, marketing, and managing capital and expenditures.

"Our speakers help financial executives navigate in this increasingly complicated banking environment and that's why so many community bankers don't miss this annual seminar," said David Erwin, the bank's director of Commercial Business Services. "We've held this seminar for nearly four decades to educate independent financial executives about how to improve their bottom line and to provide networking opportunities for banking leaders."

Next year's seminar will be held in Chicago.

About BBVA Group

BBVA Compass is a subsidiary of BBVA Compass Bancshares Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of BBVA (NYSE: BBVA) (MAD: BBVA). BBVA is a customer-centric global financial services group founded in 1857. The Group has a solid position in Spain, is the largest financial institution in Mexico and has leading franchises in South America and the Sunbelt region of the United States. Its diversified business is geared toward high-growth markets and 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 best practices. The Group is present in the main sustainability indexes. More information about the BBVA Group can be found at www.bbva.com.

About BBVA Compass

BBVA Compass is a Sunbelt-based financial institution that operates 688 branches, including 352 in Texas, 90 in Alabama, 78 in Arizona, 64 in California, 45 in Florida, 38 in Colorado and 21 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 (5th). BBVA Compass has been recognized as one of the leading Small Business Administration lenders and was recently awarded the 2013 Celent Model Bank Award for its new core banking platform. Additional information about BBVA Compass can be found at www.bbvacompass.com.

Editor's Note:BBVA Compass is a trade name of Compass Bank, member FDIC.

SOURCE BBVA Compass

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