IE Business School has turned the transformation experience of ABB Bank into a teaching case study

IE Global Business School has made the transformation experience of ABB Bank a teaching case study

The case study, prepared by IE Business School Professor Antonio Zabaleta Moreno, is titled "ABB Bank’s next frontier: Choosing the scope and path of growth."

In the format of a real-world business example, it presents students with the strategic and digital transformation process successfully implemented by the Bank in recent years, the introduction of the Agile operating model at ABB Bank, technological upgrades, and development directions based on artificial intelligence.

The case study describes ABB Bank's journey from the difficult situation the Bank was in back in 2016 to a new stage of development thanks to a large-scale transformation, as well as the Bank's strategic goals for 2026–2028.

In preparing the material, Professor Antonio Zabaleta Moreno used specific indicators reflecting the results of ABB Bank's transformation. One of these was a 16-fold increase in the number of the Bank's mobile application users over five years. Specifically, the number of ABB mobile users grew from approximately 171,000 in 2020 to 2.6 million in 2025. The app's rating increased from 1.2 to 4.9, and ABB Bank's customer satisfaction score for digital channels (NPS) rose from 48 to 77.

The Bank also successfully completed an Agile transformation. Currently, ABB Bank operates 14 Agile streams and more than 80 Agile teams. Thanks to the implementation of agile approaches, the time required to develop and launch a new product to the market at ABB Bank was reduced from 243 to 59 days.

The ABB Tech Academy, established by the Bank in 2019, has graduated more than 1,113 students, 83% of whom have been employed.

The case study considers the widespread implementation of artificial intelligence-based solutions, the expansion of digital capabilities, entry into new markets, and the development of services integrated into customers' daily lives as part of the Bank's positioning as a lifestyle partner to be the key directions for the next stage of ABB Bank's development.

Abbas Ibrahimov, Chairman of the Management Board of ABB Bank, noted:

"The transformation path traveled by ABB Bank is no longer just a part of the Bank's history of development — it has turned into a real management experience studied at an international business school. Behind this result lies the multi-year dedication of our team, openness to change, and the desire to create the best. This is a matter of great pride for us."