Foreign investors own 50.4% of the shares in Spanish listed companies, a historic record. Families, on the other hand, hold 16.7%.
Foreign investors now hold 50.4% of the shares in companies listed in Spain, according to the report from Bolsas y Mercados Españoles (BME) with closing data from 2025, as reported by diariopalentino.es. This figure is a historic high and represents an increase of 1.7 percentage points over the last year.
Since the year 2000, when foreign capital accounted for 34.7%, participation has risen by 15.7 points. In unlisted companies, the weight of foreign capital remains at 24.6%.
The report attributes the market's attractiveness to profitability, liquidity, and sector composition. The banking sector has benefited from interest rates that improved their margins, while energy companies offer established businesses, infrastructure, and dividends.
The value of private institutional funds' positions in the Ibex 35 rose from 207.320 billion euros in March 2025 to 307.634 billion in June 2026, a 48.4% increase. Europe, including the United Kingdom, accounts for 51% of these capitalisations, while the United States holds 45.6%.
The number of fund managers with positions exceeding 500 million euros has increased from 72 to 106 in fifteen months. BlackRock leads the ranking with 46.560 billion, followed by Vanguard with 38.295 billion, and Capital Group with 15.227 billion.
Spanish families are regaining some weight, with a participation of 16.7% in 2025, nine tenths higher than the previous year, although still far from the maximum of 35.1% in 1998. According to the Financial Survey of Families from the Bank of Spain, with data from 2024, only 12.2% of households, about 2.4 million, own shares directly. The median portfolio is 10,000 euros.
The public sector retains 4% of the Stock Exchange, around 45.000 billion euros. SEPI holds 27.99% of Indra and the State owns 10% of Telefónica.
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