Spain ranks as the seventh most important market in the world -based on the market value of positions held by activist investors- according to the "Sodali 40" report, which estimates the aggregated value of these investments in Spanish companies at $3.970.7 million at the end of the first quarter. This means that, within the European context, Spain is the fourth market with the highest activist penetration, only behind France, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands.
The value of activist positions in Spain shows a year-on-year growth of 8.8% (comparing March 2025 with March 2026), although in quarterly terms, it remained relatively stable with a slight increase of 0.9% compared to December 2025.
The report specifically mentions the activity of Third Point, the American fund that has a stake in Indra and actively supports the creation of a "Spanish defense rollup". Although the fund led by Dan Loeb claims to hold less than 3% of the capital -which allows it to avoid disclosing the details of its stake- it has threatened with declines in the share price if Indra does not proceed with its merger with EM&E, the company owned by the Escribano brothers.
But the most prominent role of corporate activism in Spain undoubtedly belongs to the position of the British fund TCI (The Children's Investment Fund) -led by billionaire and activist investor Chris Hohn- in Cellnex Telecom in recent years.
TCI is one of the key shareholders of Cellnex, the second largest shareholder with a 9.38% stake, only behind the Benetton family through Edizione, which owns about 9.9%).
TCI's role in Cellnex is a textbook case of successful shareholder activism:
At the beginning of 2023, TCI burst onto the scene as the main shareholder and launched an aggressive campaign against the board of the telecommunications tower company. Chris Hohn harshly criticized the management of the succession of then-CEO, Tobías Martínez, accusing the board of "lack of progress" and mismanaging the process.
TCI demanded (and achieved) radical changes in record time:
- The dismissal of then non-executive chairman, Bertrand Kan.
- The departure of several independent directors.
- The appointment of Anne Bouverot as the new chair of the board.
- Securing a seat on the board for its representative, Jonathan Amouyal.
TCI's goal was not only to change faces but to force a 180-degree turn in the business model of Cellnex. Historically, Cellnex had grown very aggressively by acquiring thousands of telecom towers across Europe, financing itself with a large amount of debt. With the rise in global interest rates, TCI pushed to halt massive purchases and switch to a strategy dubbed "The Next Chapter", focused on:
- Reducing debt: Focusing on financial discipline to achieve and maintain an Investment Grade credit rating from agencies like S&P.
- Sale of non-strategic assets: To accelerate deleveraging, they supported the sale of Cellnex's businesses in countries like Ireland (for nearly €1 billion) and Austria.
- Shareholder returns: Changing the allocation of free cash flow (FCF). Once the balance was stabilized between 2024 and 2025, the focus shifted to share buybacks and increasing dividends.
After achieving the appointment of Marco Patuano as CEO (an executive very aligned with the demands for efficiency and capital control), the waters seem to have calmed.