This Monday, CriteriaCaixa presents the strategic plan for the period 2025-2030 that the board of directors entrusted to the entity’s new chief executive, Ángel Simón, with the aim of ensuring the creation of long-term value and establishing its role as the first investment holding company. in Spain.
The financial arm of the La Caixa Foundationwho presides Isidro Faine, signed the former president of Agbar in January to open a new stage in which Criteria intends to consolidate its position in strategic sectors such as banking, telecommunications, energy and water.
In his first months in office, Simón has already shown signs of his expansionist profile with several significant operations, including the escalation to 5% of its participation in Telefónica, which hopes to continue until reaching 10%the same percentage that the Government has acquired through Sepi.
It has also strengthened its interests in the real estate sector with its irruption in Colonialof which it will be the first shareholder with 17% of its capital, and in infrastructure, also a strategic area, at acquire 9.4% of ACS.
Criteria has also taken advantage this year of the IPO of Puig for enter the perfumery and cosmetics firm with 3.05%while has made cash with the sale of 2.6% of the communications tower operator Cellnexof which until now it controlled 3%.
The presentation of Strategic plan arrives just a week after the operation to launch a joint takeover bid with the Emirati Taqa that would allow Naturgy’s shareholding to reorganizeone of Criteria’s historic investments, and facilitate the exit of funds CVC and GIP, who control 41.3% of the capital.
Although Criteria and Taqa had had an agreement on the corporate governance of the energy company for weeks, finally the Emirati group wanted to touch up some aspects of that document already negotiated and this, as well as differences with the funds regarding the price that should be offered in the takeover bid, They ended up scuttling the negotiations, according to market sources.
At first, both were considering launch a takeover bid for 100% of Naturgy and they proposed doing it in coordination, although without using a joint investment vehicle, according to the Efe agency.
In this context, It seems difficult that Criteria and the Australian fund IFM, which controls 15% of the energy company, could agree to launch a takeover bid to govern Naturgy together.given the complicated relationship between both shareholders after the partial takeover bid launched by IFM in 2021.
However, Criteria’s priority in this new context continues to be guarantee the long-term shareholder stability of Naturgy and its industrial project.
Criteria managed 26.5 billion euros in assetsin gross value, at the end of 2023, a year in which won 1,910 million thanks to the good progress of its investees, which left it 1,114 million in dividends.
The main returns came from CaixaBank (558 million), Naturgy (388 million), Telefónica (42 million) and Bank of East Asia (32 million).
Listed equities represent a large part of their asset distribution (84%), divided equally between banking investmentand the industry and services portfolio, while sYour real estate business represents another 10%which is completed with unlisted variable income, fixed income, and cash and equivalents.
In banking, it maintains 31.92% of CaixaBankwhich represents a gross value of 8.9 billion; 9.10% of the Mexican financial group Inbursa (1,500 million) and 19.19% of Bank of East Asia (600 million).
In the industrial portfolio, Criteria’s historical presence stands out in Naturgy, of which it maintains 26.71%valued at 7,000 million gross euros.
5% of Telefónica currently in the portfolio represents a gross value of 1,140 million, while 99.52% in the parking operator Saba equivalent to 700 million and 15% in Aigües of Barcelona 100 million.
