NEWS
The Iberian Investor Relations Revolution: A Market Coming of Age
By Fallon Painter, CEO, Mediatree
The Iberian Investor Relations Revolution: A Market Coming of Age
By Fallon Painter, CEO, Mediatree
Standing room only in Madrid!
The extraordinary turnout for the Global Investor Relations Revolution event in Madrid on 8 October was a powerful reflection of the growing ambition, energy and importance of Investor Relations across Spain and Portugal.
Co-hosted by the Spanish Investor Relations Association (AERI) and Mediatree, in collaboration with Alantra and Broome Yasar Partnership, the event brought together an exceptional audience of senior IR professionals, corporate leaders and capital markets specialists to explore the changing dynamics of our profession and the opportunities ahead.
And the timing could hardly be more relevant.
Spain and Portugal are undergoing an important evolution in their capital markets. With increasingly international businesses, a greater emphasis on corporate governance and growing expectations around transparency, reputation and shareholder engagement, the role of Investor Relations has never been more strategically significant.
For Iberian companies competing for international investment, the challenge is no longer simply about communicating financial performance. It is about articulating a compelling investment proposition, building credibility with global institutions and ensuring that investor perspectives are properly reflected in corporate decision-making.
This is precisely the revolution that Oskar Yasar’s book, The Global Investor Relations Revolution, seeks to capture.
As Oskar reflected in his opening address, one of the most striking aspects of the global Investor Relations profession is not simply how far it has come, but the clarity of its future trajectory. From its origins as a largely financial reporting and communications function, IR has evolved into an increasingly strategic discipline, influencing corporate reputation, valuation, governance and boardroom decision-making.
That trajectory is particularly evident across Spain and Portugal, where the growth, elevation and advancement of Investor Relations in recent years reflect a profession coming of age. The increasing sophistication of the region’s capital markets, the international ambitions of its leading companies and the growing recognition of IR as a strategic corporate function all point towards a compelling next chapter.
The direction of travel is clear. Investor Relations is no longer simply explaining corporate value to the market. It is increasingly helping to shape and protect that value.
At Mediatree, we see this evolution first-hand. Working alongside issuers on their Investor Days, Capital Markets Days and investor events, we have watched these occasions change character. They are no longer presentations of results; they are carefully built moments in which management sets out its strategy, its capital allocation and its credibility before a global audience. The companies that do this best treat every investor interaction as part of one consistent equity story, and they bring their IR teams into the room early, while that story is still being shaped rather than once it has been decided.
For Spain and Portugal, where many companies have substantial international operations and ambitions, this transformation presents a particularly exciting opportunity.
But it also raises important questions. How can Iberian companies strengthen their visibility among international investors? How can corporate governance and reputation contribute more meaningfully to valuation? And how can IR professionals build the influence, capabilities and leadership credentials needed to operate at the highest levels of business?
These were among the themes explored by our outstanding panel:
- Luca Passa, CFO, Snam
- Íñigo Mijangos, Portfolio Manager, Brookfield Asset Management
- Silvia Ruiz, Global Head of Investor Relations, Ferrovial
- Isabel Troya, Head of Investor Relations, Logista
- Oskar Yasar, Co-Founder, Broome Yasar Partnership, who moderated the discussion.
The breadth of perspectives, from corporate leadership and Investor Relations to the institutional investment community, made for a particularly valuable discussion about where the profession is heading and what companies must do to remain competitive.
Perhaps the most striking takeaway, however, was the sheer enthusiasm in the room. The standing-room-only audience demonstrated not only the appetite for these conversations, but also the determination of the Iberian IR community to play an increasingly prominent role in shaping the profession internationally.
Our sincere thanks to Alantra for so generously welcoming us to their offices, to Javier Rodriguez Vega and the AERI team for their continued leadership and support, and to all our exceptional panellists for their time, insights and contributions.
And, of course, a huge thank you to everyone who joined us and helped create such an engaging and memorable occasion.
For Mediatree, it has been a privilege to co-host this event with AERI, alongside Alantra and Broome Yasar Partnership, and to help bring this important global conversation to Madrid and to connect the Iberian IR community with the wider international debate.
My own closing thought is a simple one. The Iberian IR community no longer needs to import the conversation about the future of our profession; it is ready to help lead it. Our panellists showed that the questions facing IR teams in Madrid and Lisbon are the same ones being asked in London and New York, and that the answers being found here are every bit as sophisticated. Our task, as a community, is to keep creating the occasions where those voices are heard.
The Iberian Investor Relations revolution is gathering momentum. The ambition is evident, the trajectory is clear and the opportunity is considerable. If Madrid was anything to go by, the next chapter promises to be particularly exciting.
