Banca March has transformed the Canary Islands into an economic laboratory for its co-investment model, a formula that combines direct client participation, sustainability, and financial returns in strategic sectors. By 2025, the most solvent family-owned bank in the Spanish banking system will strengthen its presence in the Islands with projects ranging from sustainable luxury tourism to growth capital technology. To this end, it has a dedicated vehicle: Claret Capital Partners.
“Our co-investment model is not just financial, but also a commitment to regional development,” sources from the company emphasize. One of the flagship projects of this strategy is the repositioning of the former Meliá Fuerteventura, now the Paradisus by Meliá, a five-star resort on Sotavento beach. The project, developed in partnership with Meliá Hotels International, exemplifies March's focus on enhancing the value of tourism assets with an ESG approach—sustainability, governance, and social responsibility.
The entity also promotes hotel co-investments in Tenerife and Fuerteventura, in which the clients themselves participate as partners in the joint ventures, accessing the profitability of the real economy with institutional support.
Technology: capital for growth
The commitment to innovation is being realized through the Claret European Growth Capital Fund IV (ELTIF), managed in partnership with Claret Capital Partners. This fund will finance between 100 and 120 European technology companies, with a co-investment commitment of €70 million from Banca March and its institutional clients.
The formula allows Canary Island investors to diversify risks and access growth capital opportunities in an environment of stabilized interest rates, while the European Union promotes the venture debt market as a lever for industrial competitiveness.
Results and projection
Since 2008, Banca March has attracted more than 3.900 co-investors and committed over €3.900 billion to the real economy, with an average return of 2x. The model, which the bank defines as “joint growth,” is establishing itself as a solid alternative to stock market volatility and the post-COVID investor reluctance. In the Canary Islands, the co-investment strategy helps foster high-value-added projects, improve the professionalization of investment, and strengthen the local business fabric with patient capital and a long-term vision.
“The goal is not only to invest, but to share risks and benefits to create a stable economic fabric from the Canary Islands,” the bank's management summarizes. With its dual headquarters in Madrid and the Canary Islands, Banca March is reaffirming its position as a financial player that brings the concept of family-run private banking to the productive economy, at a time when Brussels is urging member states to redirect investment toward sustainable and strategic sectors.