• NTT DATA’s Banking Innovation Centre in Spain will develop solutions and improve customer and employee experience in the financial sector through the use of generative AI and immersive technology, such as virtual and augmented reality
  • Elena Carrera: “This new space will be a strategic enclave for the development of disruptive solutions in the financial sector, confirming the Bank’s commitment to putting technology at the service of our customers”
  • Fermín Crespo, Managing Director of the digital transformation firm Sociedad de Proyectos para la Transformación Digital (SPTD), joins the advisory board of Banco Sabadell’s tech skills centre in Alicante (Centro de Competencias Tecnológico de Alicante, or CCTA)
  • The CCTA is a further testament to Banco Sabadell’s commitment to the Valencian Community and to technological progress

28 February 2025

Banco Sabadell has welcomed the new NTT DATA financial innovation lab to its tech skills centre in Alicante (Centro de Competencias Tecnológico de Alicante, or CCTA), a space in it will explore the latest technology in order to deliver solutions for the financial sector that will improve customer experience.

The laboratory of NTT DATA’s Banking Innovation Centre in Spain will allow banks to trial and create new experiences for their customers and employees through artificial intelligence and other immersive technologies such as virtual reality and augmented reality.

The centre is designed to develop projects that apply agile methodologies and prototyping techniques and it will serve as a space for co-creation and ideation, fostering collaboration between different players in the financial and technology sectors.

Elena Carrera, Chief Operating and Technology Officer at Banco Sabadell, highlighted the importance of hosting this lab, as NTT DATA is “a key tech partner for the Bank. […] This new space will be a strategic enclave for the development of disruptive solutions in the financial sector, confirming the Bank’s commitment to putting technology at the service of our customers”, she said. She also emphasised the centre’s ability “to generate synergies between tech firms, authorities and experts in digitalisation, which will allow us to keep driving forward our digital transformation and improve the experience of our customers and employees”.

The reason for choosing Banco Sabadell’s tech skills centre in Alicante (CCTA) as headquarters for this lab is that it is a unique and innovative space that has existed for almost five years now, during which it has developed its own groundbreaking tech programmes in strategic areas, such as robotic process automation and artificial intelligence.

As explained by Sergio Lahoz, Global Head of Banking Europe & LATAM at NTT DATA, “we have spent more than 19 years in Alicante supporting local talent and now we want to continue growing in the province through this new financial innovation lab. It is a space designed to develop advanced solutions using generative artificial intelligence and immersive technology, making it easier for banks to undertake their digital transformation through innovative and collaborative experiences”.

CCTA Advisory Board meeting

CCTA’s Advisory Board, which meets every quarter, is chaired by Banco Sabadell’s Chief Operating and Technology Officer, Elena Carrera; its members are the Rector of the University of Alicante (UA), Amparo Navarro; Rector of the University of Miguel Hernández (UHM), Juan José Ruiz; Director of Alicante’s Centre of Digital Intelligence (CENID), Manuel Palomar; Head of Alicante’s Polytechnic University College, Virgilio Gilart; Scientific Director of ELLIS Alicante, Nuria Oliver; Financial Services Chief Executive for Accenture in Spain, Portugal and Israel, Diego López; Global Head of Banking Europe & LATAM at NTT DATA, Sergio Lahoz; Chief Executive Officer for DXC Technology, Juan Parra; and Managing Director of the digital transformation firm Sociedad de Proyectos para la Transformación Digital (SPTD), Fermín Crespo.

Also on the Board are President of Sogeviso and Advisor at Sabadell Digital, Miguel Montes; Chief Technology Officer of Banco Sabadell, Rüdiger Schmidt; IT Transformation and Planning Director at Banco Sabadell, Enrique Ávila; Director of Banco Sabadell’s Eastern Territorial Division, Fernando Canós; and Corporate Director of the Technological Skills Centre of Alicante (CCTA) and Delivery & Methodology Director at Banco Sabadell, Susana Soler.

Joining his first Advisory Board meeting since he was appointed was Fermín Crespo, Managing Director of SPTD, who manages projects for Ciudad de la Luz, Distrito Digital and Alicante Puerto de Salida, as the new representative of the Generalitat Valenciana (Valencian government). He also visited the premises of the Distrito Digital, among them the premises of the firm Dodit, dedicated to the world of gaming and eSports and partly owned by Sociedad de Proyectos para la Transformación Digital (SPTD) together with GGTech.

Fermín Crespo noted that “the public-private collaboration in the development of tech skills offers a series of benefits that drive innovation, economic growth and social wellbeing, fostering competition, improving access to cutting-edge technology, and allowing better use to be made of infrastructures and equipment”.

Crespo also added that the goal “is to make Alicante and the Valencian Community into a landmark for the most advanced sectors, where they can retain and attract new talent, thanks to the creation of jobs in sectors with high added value”.

To that end, as he further explained, “it is necessary to share the full potential of the network generated in the environment of the tech hub promoted by the Generalitat to create synergies, to increase the digitalisation of society and the economy, and to achieve greater economic diversification”.

The Advisory Board also greenlit a new edition of the hackathon Innovation Banking Hack Fest (#IBHF25), which is organised together with universities and tech partners and which will likely take place from 17 to 19 October.

CCTA, epicentre for technology in Alicante

Banco Sabadell has reinforced its commitment to the Valencian Community and to innovation by entering into strategic collaborations, such as those established in the Technological Skills Centre of Alicante (CCTA), with key partners such as Accenture and DXC Technology, which contribute, through their experience and technology, to the advancement of new digital solutions.

With initiatives such as this one, Banco Sabadell’s CCTA reaffirms its position as a driver of digital transformation, using talent, technology and collaboration to build the future of the financial sector.

Some of the projects launched by Banco Sabadell include Quantum Safe (together with Accenture and QuSecure), a quantum security initiative intended to protect financial transactions and sensitive data of customers. Another project has been developed with NTT DATA, which uses customers’ voice biometrics, such as tone, rhythm and frequency, in order to quickly and accurately identify users without the need for passwords.

Another initiative worth noting is the use of blockchain technology for suppliers to issue and market tokenised assets (CO2 emission allowances and ESG assets) and for their purchase by customers.

In addition, in order to improve its customer service, Banco Sabadell has launched a project to simplify its digital onboarding, customer enrolment and card activation processes, offering a compelling experience for users of digital banking services.