Unicaja and the future of economic growth in Andalucía

Andalucía, one of the largest regions in Southern Spain, has a strong economic foundation and significant potential for further growth. Unlocking these opportunities will require targeted investment, stronger business capabilities, and closer collaboration between the public and private sectors. For Unicaja, a bank deeply rooted in the region, the opportunity is to help translate these strengths into sustainable economic development and high-quality jobs.

Project CREA was created to support that ambition, bringing together Unicaja, the Regional Government of Andalucía, Harvard Growth Lab, and Oliver Wyman in a pioneering public-private partnership.

In this conversation, Unicaja CEO Isidro Rubiales joins Pablo Campos, president of Oliver Wyman in Spain and Portugal, to discuss the structural challenges and opportunities shaping Andalucía’s future. They explore the need to modernize financing, strengthen human capital, simplify administrative processes, and develop more flexible funding models that support companies as they grow and invest.

Rubiales also reflects on how Project CREA is moving from analysis to action. The initiative has identified more than 130 potential growth opportunities and highlighted the additional investment required to unlock them. Its next phase will focus on high-potential sectors including energy, technology, defense, and manufacturing. He also discusses the importance of collaboration and how Oliver Wyman has helped connect public, private, and academic stakeholders and translate the project’s findings into concrete action plans.

Voice over

Every region has its own story. Andalucía, one of the largest regions in Southern Spain, is now a key driver of the country's economy with a diverse productive base, a strong cultural identity, and significant opportunities for further growth.

For Unicaja, one of Spain's leading financial institutions and a constituent of the IBEX 35 Index, Andalucía is more than a market. It is where its story began.

Deeply rooted in the region, the bank has grown alongside its people and businesses, playing a central role in its economic and social development. With more than a century of history, it has developed a universal and sustainable banking model focused on retail customers.

Driven by its commitment to the communities it serves and to sustainable economic development, Unicaja launched Project CREA, a pioneering public-private partnership involving the regional government of Andalucía, Harvard Growth Lab, and Oliver Wyman.

The initiative was designed to transform the region's potential into tangible economic impact by fostering sustainable growth and creating high-quality jobs.

Pablo Campos: Hello, everyone. I'm Pablo Campos, president of Oliver Wyman in Spain and Portugal. And I'm pleased to have with me today, Isidro Rubiales, the CEO of Unicaja, one of the leading Spanish banks with a strong presence across the country. Welcome, Isidro.

Isidro Rubiales: Thank you, Pablo. It's a pleasure to be here with you today.

Pablo: Isidro, Andalucía is a region with strong economic fundamentals and significant growth potential. What are the key challenges you identified before launching Project CREA for the region to grow and thrive?

Isidro: Andalucía has seen strong economic performance in recent years, but it's true that itit still faces structural challenges. And that was the starting point of Project CREA: to quantify them rigorously.

I'd say we could summarize them in three elements. The first is that Andalucía needs to modernize its financing system. Companies need a financing structure for their projects that's more complex and flexible.

The second is human capital. The capacity to train, retain, and attract talent is a fundamental element in the development of companies. Public-private collaboration, as well as collaboration with academia, also plays an important role.

And finally, the third factor I'd highlight is process simplification. Those processes should help accelerate the creation and growth of businesses rather than slowing them down through bureaucracy.

Pablo: The results of Project CREA identified around 130 clusters in products or services that could boost growth in Andalucía. Obviously, the key challenge is how to fund that growth and investment, because Andalusian companies would require approximately €8 billion in additional financing if all those clusters were to materially grow.

How can the financial services sector help? And how can Unicaja help Andalusian companies?

Isidro: When we were talking earlier about structural challenges, perhaps the most relevant is how the role of the Andalusian financial system needs to be transformed.

I believe we need to take a step forward and go beyond traditional bank financing precisely to meet these needs. Companies increasingly need financing solutions that are more sophisticated, more agile, and more efficient.

Traditional bank financing alone is no longer enough, and we need to move towards funding models that combine debt and equity.

And this is also where greater public-private collaboration becomes essential to support these financing models, which I believe have played a significant role in driving growth in Andalucía over the past few years.

Pablo: As you just mentioned, one of the key elements of this important initiative was the nature of the public-private collaboration. What would you say was the value-add of this particular approach to the project? And what was Oliver Wyman's role in the initiative?

Isidro: Well, when you take on a project like this and want to make a meaningful contribution as a financial institution, the first thing you realize is that this isn't an individual effort. It is very complicated, from a single perspective, to structure a growth program for Andalucía.

And that's where the role of Oliver Wyman comes in. A company clearly with advisory capabilities in the financial sector and also in public administration, and that, besides that, I think has also demonstrated the ability to create working ecosystems bringing together private organizations, public institutions, and academic organizations.

I think the ability to translate this work into concrete action plans has also become clear.

Pablo: Looking back, now that you've completed phase one of Project CREA, what would you say are the key lessons learned? When did you start seeing tangible impact from the project, and how are those achievements helping shape the work in phase two?

Isidro: Well, in the first phase of Project CREA, we've been focusing on setting a roadmap aimed at finding those services and activities where Andalucía really has a competitive advantage, as well as the financial needs and new growth opportunities that would help guide the next stages of the project and define where future efforts should be focused.

I think the results are tangible in terms of impact, needs, and identifying opportunities.

Now the second phase begins, translating those initial findings into specific sectors identified during the first phase as having the greatest potential and the strongest capacity for development and long-term growth.

We're talking about sectors like energy, technology, defense, and manufacturing.

Ultimately, we're now moving from strategy to execution by engaging directly with the companies operating in each of those sectors.

Pablo: Thank you, Isidro. It's been a real pleasure talking to you today and gaining a deeper understanding of Unicaja's role and the impact of Project CREA on Andalucía's growth.

We hope this will continue to drive transformation and change in the region. And thanks, everyone, for watching us.

This transcript was edited for clarity.

Andalucía, one of the largest regions in Southern Spain, has a strong economic foundation and significant potential for further growth. Unlocking these opportunities will require targeted investment, stronger business capabilities, and closer collaboration between the public and private sectors. For Unicaja, a bank deeply rooted in the region, the opportunity is to help translate these strengths into sustainable economic development and high-quality jobs.

Project CREA was created to support that ambition, bringing together Unicaja, the Regional Government of Andalucía, Harvard Growth Lab, and Oliver Wyman in a pioneering public-private partnership.

In this conversation, Unicaja CEO Isidro Rubiales joins Pablo Campos, president of Oliver Wyman in Spain and Portugal, to discuss the structural challenges and opportunities shaping Andalucía’s future. They explore the need to modernize financing, strengthen human capital, simplify administrative processes, and develop more flexible funding models that support companies as they grow and invest.

Rubiales also reflects on how Project CREA is moving from analysis to action. The initiative has identified more than 130 potential growth opportunities and highlighted the additional investment required to unlock them. Its next phase will focus on high-potential sectors including energy, technology, defense, and manufacturing. He also discusses the importance of collaboration and how Oliver Wyman has helped connect public, private, and academic stakeholders and translate the project’s findings into concrete action plans.

Voice over

Every region has its own story. Andalucía, one of the largest regions in Southern Spain, is now a key driver of the country's economy with a diverse productive base, a strong cultural identity, and significant opportunities for further growth.

For Unicaja, one of Spain's leading financial institutions and a constituent of the IBEX 35 Index, Andalucía is more than a market. It is where its story began.

Deeply rooted in the region, the bank has grown alongside its people and businesses, playing a central role in its economic and social development. With more than a century of history, it has developed a universal and sustainable banking model focused on retail customers.

Driven by its commitment to the communities it serves and to sustainable economic development, Unicaja launched Project CREA, a pioneering public-private partnership involving the regional government of Andalucía, Harvard Growth Lab, and Oliver Wyman.

The initiative was designed to transform the region's potential into tangible economic impact by fostering sustainable growth and creating high-quality jobs.

Pablo Campos: Hello, everyone. I'm Pablo Campos, president of Oliver Wyman in Spain and Portugal. And I'm pleased to have with me today, Isidro Rubiales, the CEO of Unicaja, one of the leading Spanish banks with a strong presence across the country. Welcome, Isidro.

Isidro Rubiales: Thank you, Pablo. It's a pleasure to be here with you today.

Pablo: Isidro, Andalucía is a region with strong economic fundamentals and significant growth potential. What are the key challenges you identified before launching Project CREA for the region to grow and thrive?

Isidro: Andalucía has seen strong economic performance in recent years, but it's true that itit still faces structural challenges. And that was the starting point of Project CREA: to quantify them rigorously.

I'd say we could summarize them in three elements. The first is that Andalucía needs to modernize its financing system. Companies need a financing structure for their projects that's more complex and flexible.

The second is human capital. The capacity to train, retain, and attract talent is a fundamental element in the development of companies. Public-private collaboration, as well as collaboration with academia, also plays an important role.

And finally, the third factor I'd highlight is process simplification. Those processes should help accelerate the creation and growth of businesses rather than slowing them down through bureaucracy.

Pablo: The results of Project CREA identified around 130 clusters in products or services that could boost growth in Andalucía. Obviously, the key challenge is how to fund that growth and investment, because Andalusian companies would require approximately €8 billion in additional financing if all those clusters were to materially grow.

How can the financial services sector help? And how can Unicaja help Andalusian companies?

Isidro: When we were talking earlier about structural challenges, perhaps the most relevant is how the role of the Andalusian financial system needs to be transformed.

I believe we need to take a step forward and go beyond traditional bank financing precisely to meet these needs. Companies increasingly need financing solutions that are more sophisticated, more agile, and more efficient.

Traditional bank financing alone is no longer enough, and we need to move towards funding models that combine debt and equity.

And this is also where greater public-private collaboration becomes essential to support these financing models, which I believe have played a significant role in driving growth in Andalucía over the past few years.

Pablo: As you just mentioned, one of the key elements of this important initiative was the nature of the public-private collaboration. What would you say was the value-add of this particular approach to the project? And what was Oliver Wyman's role in the initiative?

Isidro: Well, when you take on a project like this and want to make a meaningful contribution as a financial institution, the first thing you realize is that this isn't an individual effort. It is very complicated, from a single perspective, to structure a growth program for Andalucía.

And that's where the role of Oliver Wyman comes in. A company clearly with advisory capabilities in the financial sector and also in public administration, and that, besides that, I think has also demonstrated the ability to create working ecosystems bringing together private organizations, public institutions, and academic organizations.

I think the ability to translate this work into concrete action plans has also become clear.

Pablo: Looking back, now that you've completed phase one of Project CREA, what would you say are the key lessons learned? When did you start seeing tangible impact from the project, and how are those achievements helping shape the work in phase two?

Isidro: Well, in the first phase of Project CREA, we've been focusing on setting a roadmap aimed at finding those services and activities where Andalucía really has a competitive advantage, as well as the financial needs and new growth opportunities that would help guide the next stages of the project and define where future efforts should be focused.

I think the results are tangible in terms of impact, needs, and identifying opportunities.

Now the second phase begins, translating those initial findings into specific sectors identified during the first phase as having the greatest potential and the strongest capacity for development and long-term growth.

We're talking about sectors like energy, technology, defense, and manufacturing.

Ultimately, we're now moving from strategy to execution by engaging directly with the companies operating in each of those sectors.

Pablo: Thank you, Isidro. It's been a real pleasure talking to you today and gaining a deeper understanding of Unicaja's role and the impact of Project CREA on Andalucía's growth.

We hope this will continue to drive transformation and change in the region. And thanks, everyone, for watching us.

This transcript was edited for clarity.