Abanca has no IPO plans, has appetite for inorganic growth (updated)

Banco De Sabadell, S.a

28/01/2026 11:50

Adds quotes from Chairman in paragraph 3 on M&A, data on banks' valuation and bank strategy in 4 and 5

MADRID, Jan 28 (Reuters) - Spanish lender Abanca is not considering an initial public offering in the short term, its chairman Juan Carlos Escotet said on Wednesday, adding that the lender would keep analysing potential acquisitions.

"It (IPO) is not in our pipeline ... we have a stable shareholder base with a commitment to remain," Escotet said when asked whether Abanca had any plans to go public this year. He spoke after Abanca reported a 5.8% rise in net 2025 profit earlier on Wednesday.

Asked about potential mergers or acquisitions, Escotet said that "inorganic growth is a strategic focus" for Abanca, but that a recent increase in banks' valuations was making such deals more difficult to accomplish.

Abanca's rivals include Unicaja UNI.MC and Sabadell SABE.MC, which are trading at 1.1 times their book value.

Abanca, which in 2025
denied it was interested in a merger with Sabadell
, has in the past actively acquired smaller lenders in the Iberian Peninsula, such as Portuguese lender EuroBic, Basque lender Bankoa, or Targobank, which belonged to Credit Mutuel.

 (Reporting by Jesús Aguado; editing by Andrei Khalip)

 ((jesus.aguado@thomsonreuters.com; +34 91 835 68 32; Reuters Messaging: Reuters Messaging: jesus.aguado.reuters.com@reuters.net))