Why Transparent and AI-Driven Fintechs Will Succeed in Spain

While the northern neighbours face a growing number of challenges, Spain and other Mediterranean countries are recovering. Enhancing the tourism sector and developed industry, including highly competitive pharmaceutical and automotive companies, strengthens Spain’s GDP. All this positively impacts the financial industry and citizens' purchasing power. 

How does this affect the fintech companies? What trends are dominating the Spanish market? What should be the focus of fintech businesses in 2025-2026? 

Brief Overview of Spain’s Economy and Its Growing Potential

With a 2.1% increase in GDP for 2024, Spain has demonstrated solid growth and, according to The Economist, has become the world’s best-performing economy, leaving the US, Germany, and Israel behind.

One of Spain’s main achievements is reducing the unemployment rate, which is now the lowest since the pre-crisis year of 2007. CaixaBank estimates that 2.56 million people are currently unemployed. This positive trend persists despite the growing number of migrants. 

Strengthening the labour market has led to a 7.4% increase in wages, an additional driver for the consumer goods market and fintech sector, respectively. 

The Fintech Revolution Continues 

Spain has rich soil for selected vineyards, olive trees, and… fintech businesses. The country has built a robust and investment-friendly financial system. The Spanish banking sector's total assets grew and exceeded 4 trillion euros in 2024. Moreover, 95% of the population holds bank accounts. Government initiatives, particularly the two-year-old Spain Startup Law promote entrepreneurship and the digital ecosystem.

Talking in figures:

- Spain ranks 6th in Europe by the number of active fintech businesses.

- Approximately 1,500 fintech companies operate in the country.

- In total, these companies have attracted USD 2.5 billion in funding.

The Spanish fintech landscape is diverse. Companies provide services in insurance, asset management, banking, and alternative lending for both consumers and businesses. Let’s dive deeper into the fintech environment.

Uncontested Leaders – Digital Banking and Alternative Lending Products

In the dynamic fintech landscape, neobanks and independent alternative lending platforms lead the way. This indicates financial stability and people’s confidence regarding their incomes, allowing them to plan major purchases like real estate or vehicles. But the bulk of customers are still Generation Z, who want to get immediate access to goods and services even having zero credit history.

In Spain, the total number of neobanks clients exceeds 5 million users. The British Revolut is not a single leader. Openbank and Bnext stand out among local companies. In 2017 Openbank became the first fully digital bank founded by the most significant traditional player – Santander Bank. Openbank simplifies access to diverse financial services, including mortgage products and investment instruments, relying on Santander's resources and traditional game rules. Its independent competitor – Bnext – strives to be more flexible and youth-oriented, thus focusing on pay-free basic services, cryptocurrency operations and microloans. Remarkably, founded in 2016 Bnext was the first neobank from Spain which attracted $25 million in investments in a Series A funding round. The company also cooperates with governmental entities like Spain’s postal service to attract users.  

According to AEFI and European Microfinance, the alternative lending market’s financing volumes increased from 1.3 billion euros in 2019 to 2-4.7 billion euros in 2023. Short-term lending products Moneyman, Vivus and myKredit gained the most popularity. The main features that attract people are the products’ flexibility for different customer needs and easy access to quick loans. These platforms offer competitive interest rates, follow the recent trends in risk management tools, and provide a user-friendly experience via digital-first apps.

Niche-Focusing Startups Create Their Own Rules

What about other rapidly growing fintech companies? Indeed, we can highlight startups that develop new-gen services based on стаthe rapid adoption of open banking APIs. A good example is Bankflip, a startup that helps banks, insurance companies, and other financial institutions access data from governmental bodies in real time. This service accelerates data processing related to income, assets, credits, and more, enabling financial institutions to make more informed decisions.

In Spain’s fintech landscape, you should also pay attention to startups not missing the opportunity to fill a free niche with timely solutions like Clidrive. The startup connects car owners, financial institutions, and investors to simplify car loans. The company became profitable within its first year of operation, earning 10.6 million euros, and plans to expand into neighbouring markets. Another case is Boopos, a platform for buying and selling small businesses, which raised $20 million in investments. The platform checks all businesses to be sure they are profitable and running. 

Traditional Business Goes Ahead

Traditional banks strive not to lose the innovation race, so they try to enter unknown niches. In 2025, Santander и BBVA will enable users to buy, sell, and keep cryptocurrencies. These banks joined an EU initiative to launch the International Association for Trusted Blockchain Applications (INATBA) aimed to create a reliable basis for blockchain-based services in Europe, like DeFi platforms for direct interactions between creditors and their clients. 

Trends Fintech Businesses Need Not Lose Sight Of

Let's consider the major trends shaping the fintech landscape in the next two years.

• Improvement of market regulation and common EU industry rules. By the end of 2026, the full implementation of the Second Consumer Credit Directive (CCD2) will establish unified lending standards for traditional financial institutions (banks) and alternative ones (fintech platforms). Legislation of cybersecurity and data protection will also be improved. In addition to transparency, the Spanish government is focused on developing promising areas. Thus, Spain’s Central Bank is working on a unified framework for crypto services targeted to make the country a leading crypto hub in Europe.

• AI and ML for better customer experience and alternative credit scoring. Artificial intelligence can help prevent fraud, offer personalized financial advice, reduce business risks due to precise analysis of various data sources, and advance both personal and corporate finance management capabilities.

• The growing popularity of digital banking and flexible payment solutions like BNPL ("buy now, pay later"). Fintech platforms offer interest-free credit options for one to three months but also provide online access to marketplaces, account management tools, and automatic payment reminders. The quality of services and their unification on a single platform will play a significant role.

• Growth in partnerships. Regulatory changes will encourage beneficial collaborations between traditional and alternative financial businesses. Alternative companies are more skilled at fostering innovations to help banks improve their competitiveness. 

• The talent competition. Demand for top minds in AI, ML, cybersecurity, and data science continues growing. Teams will expand by hiring engineers and mathematicians in both Spain and Latin America.

Which Fintech Businesses Have Significant Growth Potential?

Spain’s fintech industry is filled with opportunities, but it is no longer considered easy pickings. Based on the trends above, we foresee that investors will keep an eye on the next players:

1. Customer-centric banking and lending platforms. The growing demand for personal loans will drive the enhancement of neobanks and alternative lending platforms. Moreover, microloans will become more and more accessible to low-income groups. Fintech companies in this niche will no longer compete solely on the speed of operations and efficiency of financing options but also on personalized solutions to meet specific problems. 

2. Transparent businesses. The development of the legislative framework will increase market transparency since clients will have access to comprehensive information on the terms of credits and other services. Accordingly, the most “open” to customers companies with a high reputation will earn both trust and funds. 

3. Integrators of AI-driven tools and Big Data analysis. AI-based instruments will be utilized in various fintech products, such as personal advisors tailored to investments or individual financial management. Tech-savvy businesses developing in-house R&D will attract the most attention.

Rising competition in Spain’s fintech industry will accelerate innovations. Companies leveraging customer-first, open, and tech-driven solutions in their niche will be more sustainable and grow quicker than competitors.