Marco Bianchi 
Starling Bank Ltd. is reducing its board size following several board member departures. The restructuring increases the control and influence of the bank’s largest shareholder, McPike, over the institution’s governance.
The Ibex index showed restraint during the US market holiday, with oil prices briefly recovering to $80 as geopolitical tensions between the US and Iran caused investor caution. Acciona and Acciona Energía led the index near record levels.
Indra and Merlin Properties are among the most frequently recommended Spanish listed companies by major Spanish financial institutions Bankinter, Renta 4, and Sabadell for retail investors
Valentum is an asset management firm managing two equity funds (Valentum and Valentum Magno) with annual returns of 10% and 12% respectively, focused on value investing strategy in undervalued companies with strong cash generation capabilities
Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Services face an initial European Commission antitrust investigation into their dominant market power in cloud services, putting them on a collision course with the EU’s stringent digital competition rulebook.
The Bank of Spain (Spanish central bank and banking supervisor) has issued guidance encouraging financial entities to develop internal artificial intelligence capabilities to manage climate-related risks. The supervisor emphasizes the importance of validating AI results, documenting underlying assumptions, and avoiding uncritical applications of AI technology.
Spanish investment services firms experienced a two-speed sector performance in Q1 2026, with overall profitability declining significantly compared to the prior year period, with agencies particularly hard hit.
Spanish bank BBVA is expanding its attack on the German retail banking market by launching a credit card offering cashback rewards and zero fees, intensifying competition in the highly competitive retail banking sector.
Tressis, a Spanish securities company, published its investment perspective for the coming months, expressing moderate optimism about global equities with a preference for US stocks. The firm maintains a neutral stance on European, Japanese and emerging market equities, while remaining bullish on Spanish stocks and the banking sector as a beneficiary of artificial intelligence developments. The company plans to use market corrections to invest in gold and prefers fixed income positions with durations of 3-5 years.
BitGo is targeting cryptocurrency firms that are awaiting approval under the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation, as concerns persist about Binance’s licensing status in Europe.