In 2025, Instituto de Crédito Oficial (ICO) increased its business financing activity by 15% over 2024, with the approved volume amounting to 9.132 billion euros compared to 7.930 billion in 2024. The financing was directed towards self-employed individuals, SMEs and companies to promote their growth and the development of their projects.
In addition to the financing channelled through its role as a public bank, ICO manages two distinct lines of action as the State Financial Agency. On the one hand, it manages various funds and instruments of official financing for export and development and contributes to ensuring the financial sustainability of regional and local administrations. On the other hand, it manages various guarantees facilities on behalf of the State, intended to facilitate companies' access to financing under the best possible conditions in situations of exceptional uncertainty. These facilities include the COVID 19 guarantees, the guarantee facilities due the war in Ukraine, the guarantees for the flash flooding in Valencia, or the guarantee facility for mortgages aimed at young people and families.
Overall, in 2025 ICO managed a portfolio exceeding 260 billion euros as the State Financial Agency.
New ICO activity in 2025: 15% more financing for the self-employed, SMEs and companies
As a bank, ICO offers Spanish companies a wide range of financing products, which it divides into two large blocks: Direct Financing Programmes and Mediation Facilities (through financial entities).
In the area of direct financing, ICO has approved operations amounting to 7.132 billion euros, 48% more than in 2024, for both domestic and international projects, paying special attention to those that generate a positive social and/or environmental impact.
Among of the most notable operations in ICO's direct financing activities are found in housing finance, aimed at boosting the stock of affordable rental housing. During 2025, ICO channelled over 450 million euros for the construction of more than 3,400 homes for rent at affordable prices and with energy-efficient criteria.
Similarly, among its direct financing programmes, ICO has continued to work so that companies can diversify the sources where they tap into resources, offering different solutions linked to the acquisition of project bonds or corporate bonds and promissory notes issued by Spanish companies in regulated markets such as the MARF (the Alternative Fixed-Income Market), prioritising those that are certified as responsible issuers or that are listed in sustainability indices. In 2025, ICO invested 1.425 billion euros through these programmes, 59% more than in the previous year.
In the fourth quarter of 2025, and with the goal of strengthening its role as a National Promotional Bank and expanding its direct financing portfolio, ICO unveiled ICO Crecimiento, the new 100% digital direct financing tool aimed at SMEs with viable projects, growth potential and job creation capacity which, due to their specific characteristics or profile, have not been served by the usual financial channels.
This new product is processed through ICO’s online portal and is aimed at SMEs whose specific profile (innovative nature, strong investment in intangibles or level of indebtedness) leads them to face greater barriers to accessing financing. With this initiative, ICO seeks to complement the private sector, covering unattended financing niches, and with extended repayment terms.
ICO’s Mediation Lines provide financing to the self-employed and SMEs through public-private collaboration with financial entities.
One of the more notable products that currently provide the most value added to companies in our country is the ICO International Channel Facility. This facility, intended to pave the way for companies’ internationalisation, aims to promote the activity and financing of projects from Spanish companies with an international presence in third markets, through intermediation with local financial institutions.
During 2025, ICO approved 1.201 billion euros in financing to companies through the ICO International Channel Facility, representing 24% more than in 2024. This financing is directed towards projects of Spanish companies abroad such as Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) and the United States. In recent months, agreements have been signed to open this program to new markets such as Morocco and Turkey.
Promoting internationalisation is one of the priorities of the ICO Group to foster the overseas business of Spanish companies and contribute to strengthening the foreign sector, thus consolidating its role as an engine of the Spanish economy. ICO actively contributes through its financing activity to the Strategy for the Internationalisation of the Spanish Economy 2021-2027.
Of the total loan volume listed under the Mediation Facilities and direct financing programmes, 3.228 billion euros was allocated to internationalisation projects, 17% more than in 2024.
Commitment to sustainability
As one of its strategic pillars, ICO has continued working to strengthen its role as a promoter of sustainable projects, both socially and environmentally, in accordance with its 2022-2027 Strategy, aligned with the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, which establishes that 40% of all new financing during the reference period must be sustainable.
Of the total direct financing operations approved by ICO in 2025, 49%—approximately 3.521 billion euros that will mobilise an investment of 20.403 billion euros—went to financing projects with a positive environmental or social impact. The largest volume of approved financing is focused on supporting the fight against climate change.
Leader in sustainable bond markets
ICO finances its medium and long-term activity mainly through bond issues on the capital markets and through bilateral loans from multilateral financial institutions.
In 2025, ICO raised 8.686 billion euros. Of this amount, 500 million correspond to a green bond issuance, which represents the seventh issue of this type and increases the volume raised to 3.5 billion. The funds raised through these bonds are used to finance projects that promote the ecological transition and the development of sustainable finance.
Additionally, ICO also launched its 12th issue of social bonds for an amount of 500 million euros, attaining a volume of 6.05 billion euros. These issues are intended to promote projects that generate a positive social impact on self-employed individuals, SMEs and Spanish companies.
With these new issues, ICO consolidates its position as one of the leading issuers in the sustainable bond market, with 19 issues (12 social and 7 green) amounting to 9.55 billion euros.
Financial Results of ICO
In 2025, Instituto de Crédito Oficial (ICO) consolidated its growth trajectory by obtaining an after-tax profit of 277.2 million euros, a figure that represents an increase of 15.6% over the 239.8 million euros recorded in 2024. This growth bolsters ICO's ability to continue performing its role as a public development bank, supporting business financing and the country's economic development.
It should be noted that the gross margin reached 376.9 million euros, which represents an increase of 5.2% compared to the previous year.
From a prudential standpoint, ICO closed the year with a solid financial position. The solvency ratio stood at 22.85%, at levels similar to 2024 and was clearly above regulatory minimums. The delinquency rate, 3.98%, held steady compared to 2024, while the coverage ratio, 128%, continued well above the average of the financial system, reinforcing the quality of its loan portfolio.
As far as the balance sheet is concerned, the Institute continues to hold a significant place in the Spanish financial system and play an important role in the Spanish economy. In 2025, the total balance increased to 42.602 billion euros, 12.8% more compared to the 37.78 billion euros in 2024.
AXIS and Venture Capital
Another of the Institute's main strategic lines of action is implemented through AXIS, the venture capital subsidiary of the ICO Group. AXIS operates through public/private partnership through the four funds it manages: ICO Global Fund, ICO Growth Fund, ICO Sustainability and Infrastructures Fund and ICO Next Tech Fund.
Through these four funds, AXIS has approved a total of 1.133 billion euros in investments in 2025 primarily aimed at boosting the growth of companies in innovative sectors and promoting projects with a positive environmental and social impact.
In 2025, Axis has focused its activity on two fundamental areas: on the one hand, it reinforces its role as a co-investor through the ICO Growth Fund, promoting sectors such as industrialised construction or innovative projects in the health sector, and on the other hand, it revitalises the venture capital sector with the ICO Global Fund, adapting its call model to a system that allows it to adapt more quickly to market conditions.
