Banca March completes the sale to Euroclear of a 49% stake in Inversis to boost its growth and internationalisation
- Banca March has shown unwavering support for Inversis’ growth over the past 10 years, in line with the Group’s investment philosophy, which not only aims to grow the companies under its management, but also insists on the most stringent standards of good governance.
- Following the arrival of Euroclear among its shareholders, with an initial 49% stake, Inversis will be able to enhance the global scale of its end-to-end technology solutions for investment and outsourcing of financial services to reach beyond the Spanish market. It will also look to target a larger and more international customer profile.
- Following its growth strategy in recent years, Inversis has relied on the outstanding work of its employees to become the only Spanish firm offering a comprehensive value proposition that combines the services of manager and administrator, depositary bank, and fund distribution platform, among other services.
Banca March has just completed the sale to Euroclear of a 49% non-controlling stake in Inversis, the world’s leading provider of financial market infrastructure (FMI) services, in exchange for €172 million (this figure includes a discount for non-controlling shareholdings and therefore cannot be calculated on a proportional basis at 100%). After securing the pertinent regulatory clearance, Euroclear is now a shareholder of Inversis, a leading Spanish firm in global investment technology solutions and outsourcing of financial services, and which has pledged to ramp up its growth and internationalisation strategy. The arrival of Euroclear is accompanied by a plan to grow Inversis’ business, which includes a significant increase of investment in technology and other areas compared to the level envisioned prior to the sale, coupled with an increase in human resources. Euroclear will see its presence in Southern Europe expand, with notable growth expected for its fund platform FundsPlace. Having now acquired this initial 49% stake, Euroclear plans to gradually increase its stake by following a binding phase-based timeline until it ultimately reaches 100% ownership, seeing as though Banca March wants the process to progress steadily and smoothly so as not to disturb Inversis’ clients and employees.
Euroclear, a non-listed company based in Brussels, is a leading global provider of post-trade services. More precisely, Euroclear provides domestic and cross-border securities settlement and custody services for bonds, equities and derivatives, as well as investment funds, with €40.7 trillion in assets under custody and annual transactions exceeding EUR 1,162 trillion (year-end 2024). FundsPlace, a distribution platform for all types of funds (investment, ETFs, alternative and private) manages assets worth €3.7 trillion and serves around 3,000 fund distributors and 2,500 fund managers across 85 countries.
With Euroclear as a partner, Inversis will look beyond the Spanish market to increase the global scale of its range of end-to-end investment technology solutions and outsourcing of financial services to financial institutions, insurance firms and other players seeking to enter the investment product distribution business. The new shareholder will also be looking to target a larger and more international customer profile.
Banca March’s role, crucial to Inversis’ growth
The opening of Inversis’ branch in Luxembourg last May and the acquisition by Euroclear of a 49% strategic stake were the most recent milestones to have taken place in the broader growth strategy being pursued by Banca March, which in 2013 acquired a 100% stake in the company (hitherto owned by multiple shareholders). Since then, Inversis has amassed the necessary technology and human resources and made other investments to expand its range of comprehensive asset distribution services for institutional clients and amplify its international projection.
In 2021, this growth was stepped up through the launch of a strategic investment plan worth €100 million, predicated on four growth pillars: strengthening the business in Spain with new customer services; boosting international expansion in new markets; achieving inorganic growth through acquisitions that synergise with Inversis’ business; and pursuing technological transformation at all levels.
Investment philosophy of the Banca March Group: growth and good governance
The investment effort has run parallel to a steady improvement in Inversis’ key business figures, with the company closing out 2024 with net profit of €26 million (up 16% on 2023), revenues of €105 million (up 21% on 2023), and EBITDA of €46 million (up 29% on 2023), with an EBITDA margin of 44%. At 31 December 2024, the company had assets under custody worth €124.5 billion.
The Banca March Group’s investment philosophy not only looks to strengthen the companies under its management in order to make them grow, but also insists on the most rigorous standards of good governance. To succeed in this task, Inversis’ Board of Directors was restructured to now feature nine members, seven of whom are independent. Euroclear’s entry into the shareholding structure will mean the appointment of two directors representing Euroclear and one representing Banca March, while maintaining a majority of independent directors.
Inversis’ international expansion
Following the growth strategy pursued in recent years, Inversis has become the only Spanish firm with a comprehensive value proposition that combines the services of manager and administrator, custodian bank, and fund distribution platform. The distribution of all fund categories (investment, ETFs, alternative and private) is a cornerstone of Euroclear’s growth strategy, which in recent years has acquired MFEX and Goji and made strategic investments in Marketnode and IZNES. The entry of the Belgian giant as a shareholder stands Inversis in great stead to support Spanish, European and Latin American clients looking to develop and grow their international product portfolios through Luxembourg-domiciled vehicles or to receive specialised securities services from Luxembourg.
Inversis began operations at its Luxembourg branch in late May, following the acquisition of Banque Havilland’s institutional depositary business. Previously, in 2022 it had acquired 40% of Adepa, a Luxembourg group specialising in the management and administration of investment vehicles. The acquisition of Openfinance in July 2023 has also strengthened Inversis’ domestic and international product strategy.
Thanks to these deals, Inversis has amassed a complete suite of services aimed at financial institutions looking to develop their product range by developing and growing vehicles domiciled in Luxembourg, or wishing to access specialised services on financial instruments from out of that jurisdiction. Thus, clients can now arrange the services of Adepa —as management company (“ManCo”) or as administrator of the vehicles managed by other management companies— and those of Inversis, both as depositary through its Luxembourg branch and through its investment fund distribution platform.
Banca March CEO, José Luis Acea, had the following words to say: “As the sole shareholder of Inversis since 2013, Banca March has worked hard in pursuing its growth strategy and the Group’s own investment philosophy, which aims to take its subsidiaries to the next level in terms of growth, following the ‘good to better’ approach. Thanks to the outstanding work of Inversis’ own employees, the company has witnessed exceptional growth in recent years. Euroclear is the ideal partner to take Inversis to a whole new level in terms of growth and international expansion, as its arrival as a shareholder ensures the three conditions that Banca March has always insisted on from any potential buyer: continuing to be a top-drawer service provider for the bank and the rest of Inversis’ clients; offering a compelling future project for Inversis and its employees; and agreeing to an enterprise value that reflects its full potential.”
In the words of Alberto del Cid, CEO of Inversis: “With this deal, Inversis joins the Euroclear ecosystem and strengthens its position in the market by raising its international profile. Moreover, the new investments planned at Inversis will enable it to further strengthen its large customer business and export its model to other markets. Existing Inversis clients also stand to benefit from an expanded value proposition across all of the firm’s business areas.”
Meanwhile, Valérie Urbain, CEO of Euroclear, had the following words: “We are delighted to welcome Inversis to the Euroclear ecosystem. The acquisition of Inversis is aligned with the strategic vision to ramp up our one-stop-shop fund platform (Euroclear FundsPlace) and expand our presence in Southern Europe. Through this partnership, Inversis’ clients stand to benefit from Euroclear’s international outreach, expertise in the funds business, and proven capabilities as a European leader in financial market infrastructure. We look forward to accompanying Inversis in the next phase of its growth trajectory.”
www.bancamarch.es 5 March 2025
About Banca March
Banca March is one of the leading banks in private and corporate banking in Spain. It is also the only 100% family-owned bank since it was founded back in 1926. Following a prudent, long-term philosophy, Banca March’s business model is underpinned by solid financial ratios and capital metrics: at year-end 2024, the bank had the highest CET1 capital adequacy ratio within the Spanish banking industry (22.21%), as well as one of the lowest NPL ratios in the sector in Spain (1.4%, compared with an average of 3.54% for the wider sector), strong liquidity ratios (LCR of 310% and DTL of 185%). Its coverage of doubtful assets (66%) was also among the highest in the industry. Banca March's compelling value proposition has also been recognised by the rating agency Moody’s, which has raised the bank's long-term rating to A2 with a positive outlook, positioning it as one of the best-rated banks in the Spanish financial sector with a stronger rating than Spanish sovereign debt, which is currently Baa1. Banca March is one of the main shareholders in Corporación Financiera Alba, which holds significant stakes in Naturgy (indirect), Acerinox, Ebro Foods, Viscofan, Atlantic, ERM, Inmobiliaria Colonial and Technoprobe, among other companies.
About Inversis
Inversis, owned by Banca March, is the leading Spanish financial institution in offering investment technology solutions and outsourcing financial services for financial institutions, insurance firms and new players seeking to enter the investment distribution business. Since its creation, Inversis has been constantly investing in cutting-edge technology and innovation while expertly adapting to the needs of institutional business. Thanks to Inversis' technology, its institutional customers are able to outsource operations and processes that are not part of their core business to make them more efficient. Aside from being an investment products platform, Inversis also provides brokerage, settlement and custody services and state-of-the-art technology outsourcing solutions; treasury and capital markets services; depositary services; online brokerage, and research services.
About Euroclear
The Euroclear group is the leading provider of post-trade services to the financial sector. Euroclear innovates to offer security, efficiency and connectivity to financial markets and contribute to sustainable economic growth. Euroclear provides settlement and custody services for domestic and cross-border fixed income, equity and derivative securities and investment funds. As a robust and reliable capital market infrastructure operator, Euroclear is firmly committed to risk mitigation, automation and efficiency at scale for its global client base. The Euroclear group consists of Euroclear Bank, the international and Irish CSD, as well as Euroclear Belgium, Euroclear Finland, Euroclear France, Euroclear Nederland, Euroclear Sweden, and Euroclear UK & International.