Pedro Sánchez announces the creation of the Spain Grows Fund to extend the reformist drive of the Recovery Plan beyond 2026

Madrid

Pedro Sánchez closes the 'Spain Investors Day' International Forum (Pool Moncloa/Borja Puig de la Bellacasa)

The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, has announced the creation of the Spain Grows sovereign wealth fund, endowed with a base of €10.5 billion from the Recovery Plan in order to extend the reformist drive of the NextGenerationEU funds, together with the aim of mobilising some €120 billion through private debt and domestic and international investors. This vehicle, which will be managed by the Official Credit Institute (ICO), will always co-invest with the private sector through loans, guarantees and capital instruments, prioritising key sectors to improve the productivity of the Spanish economy, including housing, energy, digitalisation, AI, reindustrialisation, circular economy, infrastructure, water and sanitation, and security.

This announcement was made during his speech at the closing of the 11th edition of the international economic and financial forum 'Spain Investors Day', held in Madrid, which was also attended by the Minister for Defence, Margarita Robles. Regarding the NextGenerationEU funds this year, Pedro Sánchez explained that "we want to go beyond 2026 and ensure that the commitments we are making to the energy transformation, the digital transition, human capital and reindustrialisation in all territories, as well as the reformist drive, will extend beyond 2026 to give continuity to all these reforms".

To this effect, he announced the creation of the Spain Grows Fund, a sovereign wealth fund that will take over from the NextGenEU funds and fuel their momentum, "making the legacy of the NextGenEU funds long-lasting beyond 2026" because "European funds have not only helped us to resist and recover in a difficult moment, but they have allowed us to change course and transform our country forever". The President of the Government will publicly present the details of the Spain Grows Fund next Monday, together with the Minister for Economy, Trade and Business, Carlos Cuerpo.

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, attends the 'Spain Investors Day' forum | Pool Moncloa/Borja Puig de la Bellacasa

First meeting of the Strategic Investment Committee

"If the NextGen funds were an exercise in European sovereignty, the Spain Grows Fund will be an exercise in national sovereignty and a vindication that there is another way of doing things in the face of the dominance of a discourse wherein issues such as equality, diversity, commitment to sustainability and a humanist approach to digitalisation are increasingly being sidelined", said Pedro Sánchez. Along these lines, he added that the first meeting of the Strategic Investment Committee has just been held, another new tool for attracting productive capacities to leading sectors, but always aligned with national and EU interests.

The President of the Government emphasised that the transformations Spain has undergone in recent years "would not have been possible without the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan", thanks to which an "unprecedented" programme of reforms was implemented, including the labour market reform to fight against precariousness, the modernisation of vocational training, and the promotion of the entrepreneurial ecosystem through the Startup Law and the Crea y Crece Law, a reformist drive that has mobilised €63 billion of NextGenerationEU funds. "I think we can look back and say with pride that Europe is great when it dares. When you are not afraid, you speak clearly, and at this time we must not be afraid but speak clearly and think about the common good of Spain and Europe. We did it then and we must do it now with more determination, deepening the single market, strengthening our economic security and financial autonomy, forging new trade partnerships, such as the one we have just concluded with Mercosur, which is a great success for Europe after 25 years, and committing to an ambitious budget to finance European public goods," he argued.

"2026 starts with good economic prospects"

In his speech, Pedro Sánchez stressed that "2026 has begun with good economic prospects" for Spain as the sixth positive year since the shock of the pandemic, with "economic growth and continued creation" that exceed forecasts, and with an economic policy that allows "growth, distribution and reduction of emissions". In view of this "great success for the country", he pointed out that "we are getting used to being consistently among the best economies on the planet. I don't want to be complacent, but it is true that we are one of the fastest growing European economies, creating half a million jobs a year, and the Ibex 35 is breaking records every session". He added that "what was once dreamt of as an unattainable achievement is now the pattern of our economy. Our new normal: economic excellence", and that this "favourable structural change in a period of uncertainty and instability makes all the difference".

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, together with the Minister for Defense, Margarita Robles, listens to the speakers at the 'Spain Investors Day' forum | Pool Moncloa/Borja Puig de la Bellacasa

However, despite these "achievements", he advocated working on current challenges such as continuing to reduce poverty and inequality, which are now at historic lows, resolving the housing problem, and increasing the real disposable income of households. He called on the investors present at the event to help the government "in any way they can". All this against a backdrop where despite the "difficult" international context, Spain grew by 2.9% in 2025, and will grow by at least 2.2% in 2026, according to the forecasts of the main international organisations. "A large part of this success is due to you, who have chosen us to start, continue or scale up your projects. And there are powerful reasons behind that choice," he told those present.

"Spain is a safe haven in an increasingly turbulent world"

"In an increasingly turbulent world, Spain is a safe haven. Here you won't find trade tensions, geopolitical risks or legal insecurity", but "social peace, territorial cohesion and a stable framework that favours talent, wherever it originates from, and a government committed to the companies that drive this country", he guaranteed. In this regard, he made it clear that "rather than being a closed and poor nation, Spain is opening up to the world to guarantee prosperity and the financing of its welfare state and territorial cohesion". In this regard, Spain continues to be a preferential investment destination, especially for greenfield projects, as the fifth country in the world and third in Europe to receive the most projects since 2013. The stock of productive foreign direct investment represents 41% of GDP, exceeding €650 billion after ten consecutive years of growth. For this reason, he asserted that "we are not only one of the best countries in the world to live in; we are also one of the best countries in the world to invest in".

Clear roadmap and economic transformation: "Spain is the place to be"

The chief executive explained that behind these achievements there is a "clear roadmap and an unprecedented commitment to transforming our economy, with ambition, courage and dialogue", and to converting "weaknesses into advantages". To this effect, he referred to energy costs, with Spain producing most of its electricity through renewables, achieving energy that is 20% cheaper than the European average. "We are not going to slow down the commitment to renewables, and of course we have agreed with energy companies to close power plants. We are going to continue along these lines, because we are committed to cheaper energy that complies with the energy transition so that we leave behind a habitable world. If companies with owned nuclear power plants want to extend the active lives of the plants, they must propose and guarantee energy security in the territories where they operate, and neither the General State Administration nor the citizens with their taxes are going to have to pay for the extension of the life of the plants via subsidies", he assured.

Group photo from the international financial forum 'Spain Investors Day' | Pool Moncloa/Borja Puig de la Bellacasa

He also referred to finances, having reduced Spain's debt by 23 base points since the pandemic. "Who would have thought just a few years ago that we would close 2025 with a lower public deficit than Germany, a lower risk premium than France, and a lower debt ratio than the US? Well, we have done all three," he celebrated.

Another of the new strengths cited by President Sánchez is the transformation of the productive system, especially training, since "Spain's best asset is its human capital". There are already almost 4 million people training and working at the same time, and more than 1.2 million students in vocational training. Moreover, Spain is the economy that has contributed most to the growth of R&D&I in Europe since 2019, doubling non-tourist service exports in just a decade, and high-skilled jobs have gained weight in the labour market. He also stressed that productivity is growing at its fastest pace since 1995.

At the end of his speech, he stressed that Spain is open to productive investment and human capital, without renouncing its values of democracy, justice, solidarity and sustainability. "Today, at a time of global retreat, if we are different it is because our slogan could be updated from 'Spain is different' to 'Spain is the place to be'. No democracy in the world has undergone a transformation like Spain's in the last half century. We are a success story. We are a country with a strong welfare state, prospering with social peace and more territorial cohesion. A country in which we all win, both the Spanish and those who invest here and rely on us", he concluded.

Non official translation