The assets under management (AUM) in Spain's individual pension plan system increased by 5.49 per cent in the first half of 2026, rising by €4.882bn to €93.8bn at the end of June.

According to the latest data from VDOS, independent providers recorded the strongest asset growth over the six-month period, with AUM increasing by 9.13 per cent.

They were followed by insurers, up 7.5 per cent, and international groups, which posted growth of 6.53 per cent.

Banks continued to dominate the market, holding a 76.14 per cent share, ahead of independent groups (8.35 per cent) and insurers (5.88 per cent).

CaixaBank remained the largest provider by AUM, with €26.6bn and a 28.33 per cent market share. It was followed by BBVA (€17.5bn - 18.69 per cent) and Santander (€11.3bn - 11.99 per cent), excluding the value of redemption rights from mathematical provisions.

By asset class, equity pension plans recorded the largest increase, with assets growing by €2.441bn during the first half of the year.

In contrast, fixed income plans experienced the largest decline, with assets falling by €106m. Despite this, mixed plans remained the largest segment of the Spanish market, with €42bn in assets and a 44.79 per cent market share, followed by equity plans at €21.7bn.

In terms of performance, Caser Pensiones led among the largest managers with a weighted average return of 8 per cent, followed by VidaCaixa (7.93 per cent) and Mapfre Vida y Pensiones (7.78 per cent).

Among independent managers, Cobas Pensiones delivered the strongest first-half performance, posting a weighted average return of 12.92 per cent, ahead of Bestinver Pensiones (12.7 per cent) and Dunas Capital Pensiones (11.43 per cent).

By VDOS categories, Asia-emerging equity plans recorded the highest returns at 27.77 per cent, followed by US equity plans (13.57 per cent) and global equity plans (13.23 per cent).

Meanwhile, short-term euro fixed income plans were the weakest performers, although they still generated a positive return of 0.57 per cent.

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