Particle.news

Ibercaja Builds Voluntary Second Stabilisation Reserve to Protect Foundation Control

The voluntary buffer is intended to guarantee the foundation's strategic autonomy, reducing the likelihood of a stock market listing.

Overview

  • Fundación Ibercaja has quietly been constituting a voluntary second 'stabilisation' reserve over the past couple of years as an extra financial cushion to protect the foundation's control of the bank.
  • The move follows the earlier regulatory reserve of about €330 million that Ibercaja set aside to avoid a mandatory IPO and signals that management does not plan a public listing now.
  • Ibercaja leans on strong 2025 results — including a CET1 ratio of 14.2%, recurring profitability above 11%, roughly €110 billion of business volume and low nonperforming loans (about 1.2%) — to justify staying independent.
  • As part of a five-to-seven-year plan the bank will shift lending away from mortgage concentration and aim for roughly 35% of its credit book to be corporate and SME financing while pursuing selective digital and technology acquisitions.
  • The bank remains fully owned by savings-bank foundations that ploughed more than €138 million in 2025 dividends into social and cultural programs, a structure Ibercaja says preserves regional service, jobs and its social mission as the sector grows more concentrated.