CaixaBank

Is CaixaBank safe?

Yes. CaixaBank serves 20.9 million customers in Spain and Portugal, and its numbers are solid. At 30 June 2026 its CET1 ratioCET1 ratioA bank's highest-quality capital (mainly shares and retained profits) as a share of its risk-weighted assets. Higher means more room to absorb losses.More in the glossary was 12.5% against a 9.12% requirement, its liquidity coverage ratioLiquidity coverage ratioA bank's cash and easy-to-sell assets compared with the money that could flow out in a 30-day crisis. It must be at least 100%.More in the glossary was 184%, and S&P and Fitch rate it A+. Deposits are covered by Spain's Fondo de Garantía de Depósitos (FGD) up to €100,000 per holder. We score it 78/100, level with BBVA. The deductions come from history rather than today's balance sheet: CaixaBank grew by absorbing banks the Spanish state had to rescue, and it has drawn two data protection fines.

A bank built partly from rescued banks

The original CaixaBank, the banking business of Barcelona savings bank "la Caixa", came through Spain's 2010–2013 banking crisis without state capital. It then bought three troubled lenders. According to the FROB, Spain's bank resolution fund, the state injected €22.4 billion into BFA-Bankia, €5.5 billion into Banco de Valencia and €977 million into Banca Cívica, the last of which was repaid.

Bankia was the biggest. Its 2011 stock market listing collapsed into a rescue in 2012, and CaixaBank absorbed it in 2021. BFA Tenedora de Acciones, the state holding company that owned Bankia, still held 18.03% of CaixaBank in June 2026. The largest shareholder is CriteriaCaixa, the investment arm of the "la Caixa" Foundation, with 31%. The state stake is not a risk to depositors, but it is a reminder of how the bank reached its size.

Some Bankia litigation remains. CaixaBank says claims over Bankia's IPO are now residual and provisions are sufficient.

Capital and liquidity

CaixaBank aims to keep its CET1 ratio between 11.5% and 12.5% and pays out anything above that through dividends and buybacks. So do not expect the buffer to grow. It sat at 339 basis points above the level that would restrict dividends in June 2026.

Liquidity is the strongest part of the picture. Retail deposits are 76.2% of the deposit base, and CaixaBank estimates that 60.1% of deposit balances fall within the €100,000 guarantee. Insured household savings like these rarely run, and loans are smaller than deposits.

Conduct: fewer scandals than its rivals, but not none

The most serious recent case ended well for the bank. In 2018 Spain's anti-corruption prosecutor began proceedings against CaixaBank, its former head of compliance and staff over alleged money laundering through ten Madrid branches by people the authorities linked to Chinese groups that had defrauded the tax office. In January 2026 the judge closed the case against the bank, at the prosecutor's request. Proceedings continue against six branch employees.

Other issues:

• In 2021 the Spanish data protection agency (AEPD) fined CaixaBank €6 million for processing customer data without valid consent and for poor privacy information.
• Like every Spanish mortgage lender, it carries litigation over mortgage floor clauses, expenses and loans tied to the IRPH index.
• On 10 June 2026 the competition regulator CNMC opened proceedings against several banks, CaixaBank included, over executives' public statements on future mortgage pricing. No decision has been made.

Compare that with BBVA, which was sent to criminal trial in July 2026, together with its former chairman, over the Villarejo case. CaixaBank's record is somewhat cleaner.

Digital security

In early 2024 the AEPD fined CaixaBank €5 million after a customer saw documents about another client's transfers in his online banking profile. The agency found the bank's security measures were not adequate to the risk. We found no mass breach of customer data. CaixaBank's interim report flags rising digital fraud and AI-driven phishing as its main cyber threats, which matches what Spanish customers see: fake SMS messages and calls pretending to be the bank.

How to keep your money safe at CaixaBank

1. Count CaixaBank, imagin and former Bankia accounts as one bank for the €100,000 FGD limit.
2. Check whether a product is a deposit. Investment funds and savings insurance sold in branches, often through VidaCaixa and CaixaBank Asset Management, are not covered by the FGD.
3. Never approve a payment in CaixaBankNow that you did not start yourself, and hang up on callers asking you to move money to a "safe account".
4. If you hold more than €100,000, spread it across unrelated banks. BPI in Portugal is a separate bank with its own limit.

How we scored it

Liquidity (90) is CaixaBank's strongest factor, and capital (82) and deposit protectionDeposit insuranceA government-backed scheme that repays bank customers up to a set limit if their bank fails, such as the FDIC in the US or the FSCS in the UK.More in the glossary (82) are solid. Stability history (76) is held back by the rescued banks it absorbed, and conduct (66) and digital security (70) by data protection fines and Spain-wide mortgage litigation.