The Spanish shareholding core in Telefónica is diluted

MadridWhen the Saudi operator STC entered Telefónica, the telecom company, then chaired by José María Álvarez-Pallete, argued that the "Spanishness" of the shareholding was not lost. It said so because a core group based in the State was maintained with historical shareholders such as Criteria, BBVA itself, and CaixaBank, which sold its stake in 2024. The State Industrial Shareholdings Corporation (SEPI), the Spanish government's investment arm, would later join them, acquiring 10% of Telefónica's share capital. Today, however, this Spanish core has been diluted. CaixaBank's departure two years ago is now joined by BBVA's reduction, which in the last few hours has gone from controlling 5.007% of the share capital to holding only a 1.965% stake, as confirmed by ARA from market sources.

This decrease comes after a historic link between the financial entity and the telecom operator that began in 1997, when BBVA and Argentaria had not yet merged and took advantage of the privatization by José María Aznar of Telefónica to buy 5%. BBVA sources indicate that the relationship between both companies continues to be "magnificent" and that they continue to "collaborate" on many projects. Telefónica, for its part, has limited itself to conveying "maximum respect" for the decisions of its shareholders.

For some time now, the bank chaired by Carlos Torres has classified Telefónica as a non-strategic holding and put up the "for sale" sign, which is why the decision to divest 3% of the share capital has not generated surprises in the telecom company. In fact, it was a matter of time. Therefore, the operation responds "exclusively" to financial criteria, indicate bank sources, and to "portfolio management". This path began to be outlined in 2023 and had the bank's exit from Telefónica's board of directors as a turning point.

One of the most significant moments in the relationship between BBVA and Telefónica was in the year 2000, when under Juan Villalonga's presidency of the telecom company, the financial entity acquired 10% of the share capital. Since 2017, it had remained stable at 5%. In any case, those who today form the reference shareholding core in Telefónica are SEPI (10%), Criteria (10%), and the Saudi group STC (9.9%).