Santander y BBVA trasladan su rivalidad a los seguros

Santander and BBVA are bringing their rivalry into the insurance industry, as both major Spanish banks compete for a spot in the top ten of the largest group distributors of insurance policies in Spain. Ana Botín's Santander leads the pack at the moment, but the feud between the two banking giants shows no signs of stopping. Since a few years ago, Santander Seguros and BBVA Seguros, the insurance branches of the two banking behemoths, have sharpened their strategy and taken their sales of insurance policies to a new level, even battling each other for the tenth place in the total ranking of groups with the highest premiums collected in Spain. CaixaBank, through its subsidiary VidaCaixa, currently holds that position.

Santander Seguros has seen a surge in operating income of 13.1% compared to June 2025, reaching over 1.404 million euros in premiums at the close of the first half of the year, putting the company in the tenth place in the market according to ICEA's sector analysis platform. This achievement allows Santander Seguros to overtake BBVA Seguros, which held the same position in the same period last year.

Currently, BBVA Seguros sits in the fourteenth spot, trailing by a narrow margin with over 1.355 million euros in premiums collected between January and June, a 5.8% increase compared to the same period in 2025.

The distribution of policies has become a crucial lever for the performance of banking entities, and both Santander and BBVA are making significant efforts to offer a competitive range of products in this area. The two banks are prominent examples of this trend, and their commitment to the insurance sector extends beyond their own divisions.

Both Santander and BBVA have forged alliances with pure insurance companies to sell policies through their network of branches, with those figures being consolidated in the partner's balance and thus not counted in the revenues of Santander Seguros and BBVA Seguros.

Established in 2019, Santander has a joint venture called Santander Mapfre with Grupo Mapfre, specializing in coverages (such as auto or multirisk policies) aimed at self-employed individuals and businesses. As of June, this entity generated over 80 million euros in premiums, a 17.5% increase compared to the previous year. On the other hand, BBVA formed a joint venture with Allianz in 2020, named BBVA Allianz.

In the first half of 2026, the company obtained over 338 million euros in non-life insurance distribution, which represents a 9.6% increase compared to the previous year.