BBVA Spark Summit 2026

Eight editions. BBVA Spark Summit continues to consolidate itself as the place where the future of the entrepreneurial ecosystem is designed Read More

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November 5 | Los Tinglados, Barcelona

Crafting the future

The new edition of BBVA Spark Summit is dedicated to the art of building: designing, crafting and shaping the future of the ecosystem with the same dedication, rigor and craftsmanship as those who, in every great revolution, knew how to use the tools of their time to create something new.

Agenda

November 5 | Los Tinglados, Barcelona

10:00 - 11:00

Welcome coffe

11:00 - 11:10

Welcome to the atelier stage

11:10 - 11:50

Winning Globally from Europe

11:50 - 12:30

The industrial tech renaissance: Unlocking the next frontier of technology

12:30 - 12:55

Coffe break

12:55 - 13:25

Rebuilding While Running: How Leaders Reinvent for the AI Era

13:25 - 13:55

Forget together: Paack's Journey to Exit

13:55 - 14:00

Closing

14:00 - 16:00

Networking cocktail

10:00 - 11:00

Welcome coffe

Enjoy our networking coffee

11:00 - 11:10

Welcome to the atelier stage

Welcome to BBVA Spark Summit 2026: Crafting the Future

11:10 - 11:50

Winning Globally from Europe

In this session, we will explore what European scaleups are doing well, how the investment landscape in Europe has matured, and what changes are still needed to close the late-stage funding gap and build global leaders from Europe.

Speakers:

  1. Itxaso del Palacio, General Partner at Notion Capital
  2. Antoine Servant, Co-founder & COO at Naboo
  3. Sergi Ocaña Dexory, Head of Strategic Finance at Dexory
  4. David Backstrom, Founder & CEO at seQura

11:50 - 12:30

The industrial tech renaissance: Unlocking the next frontier of technology

In this session, we will explore how artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced technologies (deep tech) are converging to drive the next wave of innovation, what this means for founders and investors, and where Europe can take the lead.

Moderator: Santiago Muguruza, Head of BBVA Spark

Speakers:

  1. Jacky Abitbol, Managing Partner at Cathay Innovation
  2. Andreas Schwarzenbrunner, General Partner at Speedinvest
  3. Marcus Hennig, Chief Business Officer at Planqc
  4. Carla Gómez Cano, Co-founder & CEO of Theker

12:30 - 12:55

Coffe break

Enjoy our networking coffee

12:55 - 13:25

Rebuilding While Running: How Leaders Reinvent for the AI Era

In this session, we will explore how chief executive officers (CEOs) are reinventing strategies, teams, and business models for the artificial intelligence era, while navigating constant change and building more resilient organizations.

Moderator: Lucia Hojman, Head of Business Development at BBVA Spark Europe

Speakers:

  1. Joaquín Cuenca, CEO & Co-founder of Magnific
  2. Andres Torrubia, CEO of Nanomind.bio & Board Member at Magnific
  3. Jannis Koehn, Co-founder & COO of Float

13:25 - 13:55

Forget together: Paack's Journey to Exit

In this session, we will explore how the partners you choose can make all the difference when the road gets tough. We will discuss how the right partners can help Paack tackle key challenges, unlock opportunities, and ultimately shape a successful exit.

Moderator: Roberto Albaladejo Pina, Global Head of Strategy & M&A at BBVA

Speakers:

  1. Guillaume Santamaría, Partner at Infravia Capital
  2. Aquilino Peña, Co-founder & Managing Partner at Kibo Ventures
  3. Xavier Rosales, Co-founder & CEO of Paack Iberia
  4. José Miguel Herrero, Co-founder & Managing Partner at Big Sur Ventures

13:55 - 14:00

Closing

14:00 - 16:00

Networking cocktail

Enjoy our networking coffee

Speakers

Itxaso del Palacio

General Partner at Notion Capital

Andreas Schwarzenbrunner

General Partner and Managing Director at Speedinvest

Carla Gómez

Co-founder & CEO at Theker

Joaquín Cuenca

CEO & Founder at Magnific

Roberto Albaladejo

Global Head of Strategy and M&A at BBVA

David Bäckström

Founder & CEO at seQura

Jacky Abitbol

Managing Partner at Cathay Innovation

Aquilino Peña

Co-founder & Managing Partner | Kibo Ventures

Xavier Rosales

Co-founder & CEO at Paack Iberia

José Miguel Herrero

Founder & Managing Partner at Big Sur Ventures

Marcus Hennig

Chief Business Officer at planqc

Sacha Michaud

Sacha Michaud, Cofounder of Glovo

Sergi Ocaña

Head of Strategic Finance at Dexory

Guillaume Santamaria

Partner at InfraVia Capital Partners

Antoine Servant

Co-founder & COO at Naboo

Santiago Muguruza

Head at BBVA Spark

Itxaso del Palacio

General Partner at Notion Capital

Itxaso Del Palacio is a General Partner at Notion Capital, a leading European B2B SaaS venture capital firm that has invested in companies such as GoCardless, CurrencyCloud and Paddle. She was previously Investment Partner at M12 (formerly Microsoft Ventures) in Europe. Her most recent investments include Naboo, Yulife, Orus, Onfido and Beamery. An engineer with a PhD in entrepreneurship and venture capital, she is an Assistant Professor in Entrepreneurship at UCL (University College London). For more than a decade she has taught entrepreneurship at UCL, Imperial College and the Royal College of Art, and she serves on the board of Kauffman Fellows.

Andreas Schwarzenbrunner

General Partner and Managing Director at Speedinvest

Andreas Schwarzenbrunner entered venture capital via politics – an unconventional path that shaped his international perspective on technology, regulation, and markets. Based in Paris, he has worked across Munich, San Francisco, Stockholm, Sydney, and Vienna. At Speedinvest, Andreas invests in enterprise software, industrial tech, and climate tech, backing founders building mission-critical technologies at the intersection of software, hardware, and real-world infrastructure. He is an investor and board member at ARX Robotics, Emmi AI, Mimic Robotics, trawa, and others.

Carla Gómez

Co-founder & CEO at Theker

Carla Gómez Cano is the Co-Founder and CEO of THEKER, a Barcelona-based robotics and AI company redefining industrial automation through fully vertically integrated intelligent robotic systems. Under her leadership, THEKER has secured one of Europe’s largest Series A funding rounds in intelligent robotics, positioning the company as an emerging global player in Physical AI. Today, THEKER’s robotic systems are already operating at leading multinational companies across the fashion, logistics, and food industries. By combining artificial intelligence, advanced robotics, and industrial engineering, Carla and her team are pioneering a new era of intelligent, autonomous production.

Joaquín Cuenca

CEO & Founder at Magnific

Joaquín Cuenca is the CEO and founder of Magnific, an AI-powered platform offering digital tools for content creation. He studied Physics and Computer Science at the Universities of Valencia and Paris-Sud. He later co-founded Panoramio, which was acquired by Google in 2007, and spent three years working at Google's Zurich offices as a Tech Lead. He also contributed to the creation of Loqu, acquired by eBay in 2005, and was a co-founder and investor in BeSoccer. In 2010, he co-founded Freepik in Málaga, initially as a platform for graphic resources. In 2026, the company evolved into Magnific, expanding its offering to include AI-powered image, video, audio, and 3D content creation.

Roberto Albaladejo

Global Head of Strategy and M&A at BBVA

Roberto Albaladejo has been Global Head of Strategy and M&A at BBVA since 2026, where he leads the group's corporate strategy and its mergers and acquisitions. He joined the bank in 2008 in the Strategy and M&A area. He has since headed the Chairman's Office and BBVA Spark, and was responsible for Large Corporate Clients and for CIB and Sustainability strategy. Before BBVA he worked at Deloitte and Garrigues. He holds a degree in Business Administration from the University of Murcia and an Executive MBA from IESE.

David Bäckström

Founder & CEO at seQura

David Bäckström is the founder and CEO of seQura, a fintech company founded in Barcelona in 2013 that processes more than €2 billion in annual volume across six markets. With over 25 years of experience, he has built companies focused on sustainable growth and long-term value creation. Before founding seQura, he founded European Telemedicine Clinic, one of Europe’s leading diagnostic imaging providers, which was later acquired by Unilabs. Today, he is leading seQura’s evolution beyond flexible payments, developing technology to strengthen the relationship between businesses and their customers.

Jacky Abitbol

Managing Partner at Cathay Innovation

Jacky Abitbol is a Managing Partner at Cathay Innovation based in Paris. Since 2016, he has led the firm's activities across Europe and Latin America, focusing on digital health and AI-driven technologies, spearheading over 40 major investments including Glovo, Owkin, Ledger, Nabla, AQEMIA and Flowdesk. Before this, Jacky worked in strategic consulting and held Director positions at Orange Capital and SanDisk, gaining experience in business transformation and market entry. He holds an MBA from Boston University and a degree in Business Administration from Madrid Business School.

Aquilino Peña

Co-founder & Managing Partner | Kibo Ventures

Aquilino Peña is the co-founder of Kibo Ventures, a venture capital fund that manages assets worth 350 million euros. Kibo Ventures has invested in more than 70 high-growth companies, including four unicorns. Among them are Flywire (the first tech company of Spanish origin to be listed on Nasdaq), Job&Talent, Devo, Sorare, Paack, Carto and Clarity. Peña has also been an angel investor in more than 15 companies such as Bodeboca, Acierto, Volotea or the ISDI business school, among others. Additionally, he has been Chairman of SpainCap, member of the Executive Committee of Adigital, President of the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) and Executive Director of the European Internet Advertising Association (EIAA), among other relevant forums. In his professional life prior to Kibo Ventures, he was CEO of Mediaedge:cia for Spain and Portugal, General Manager of Interactive Services Spain at Orange, Marketing and Customer Service Director of eresMas/Wanadoo (France Telecom), founder and CEO of Submarino in Spain and Strategy Consultant for The Boston Consulting Group in Madrid and São Paulo. Peña holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a dual degree in Law and Business Administration from ICADE.

Xavier Rosales

Co-founder & CEO at Paack Iberia

Xavier Rosales is Co-founder and CEO of Paack Iberia. With a strong technical background, he holds a degree in Telecommunications Engineering from UPC-RWTH Aachen in Signal Processing and a degree in Business Sciences from the UOC. He completed his education with an MBA from Steinbeis University of Berlin and specialized postgraduate studies in DataWarehouse, DataMining and Lean Six Sigma (Black Belt). Throughout his career, Xavi has held key positions including General Manager at LamiGraf GmbH and co-CEO of LamiGraf Group, combining operational expertise with a deep understanding of technology and business transformation.

José Miguel Herrero

Founder & Managing Partner at Big Sur Ventures

Jose Miguel Herrero is founder of Big Sur Ventures. As a serial entrepreneur he founded or co-founded numerous tech companies and has been involved in internet since 1994. “I admire the risk-taker; building something form nothing is not for the timid. It's hard, but there are few things as rewarding. Helping entrepreneurs and contributing to that journey is what we most enjoy doing.” Jose Miguel holds BSEECS and MSEE degrees from the University of Santa Clara and an MBA from the Haas School of Business, UC Berkeley.

Marcus Hennig

Chief Business Officer at planqc

Marcus Henning is Chief Business Officer at planqc, where he leads the strategic development and implementation of quantum computing solutions. Holding a PhD in Physics and a background in mathematical finance, he began his career contributing to international research projects in France, China, and Australia before moving into management consulting. For more than a decade, he helped organizations design and implement new business models, specializing in innovation and emerging technologies. With extensive experience in building innovation units and deep expertise in quantum computing, he combines scientific excellence with strong business execution to help companies leverage quantum technologies strategically and create sustainable competitive advantage.

Sacha Michaud

Sacha Michaud, Cofounder of Glovo

Sacha Michaud is the co-founder of Glovo, one of Europe’s leading on-demand technology platforms. Since launching the company in 2015, he has played a key role in shaping its strategy and international expansion, driving its growth across Europe, Central Asia, and Africa until its acquisition by Delivery Hero in 2022. He is also the co-founder of Yellow, a venture capital fund focused on supporting early-stage entrepreneurs through investment, operational expertise, and strategic mentorship. Previously, he held executive roles at Betfair and founded LatinRed, one of Spain’s early internet services companies. With more than two decades of experience as an entrepreneur and investor, he is widely recognized as a prominent figure in the European technology ecosystem.

Sergi Ocaña

Head of Strategic Finance at Dexory

Sergi Ocaña is the Head of Strategic Finance at Dexory, a UK robotics and AI scale-up transforming global warehouse operations. He began his career in audit at PwC before spending nearly a decade at Oslo-listed logistics conglomerate Stolt-Nielsen Limited, working across corporate finance, debt financing, and investor relations. He subsequently held senior strategic finance roles within London’s fintech ecosystem. At Dexory, Sergi leads capital allocation, fundraising, investor relations, and long-term financial planning to support the company’s global expansion.

Guillaume Santamaria

Partner at InfraVia Capital Partners

Guillaume Santamaria joined InfraVia in 2019 to launch the Growth Equity strategy and sits on its investment committee. Early technology and digital enthusiast, he brings a 15 year-long experience in investing in high-growth tech companies across Europe. Through 40+ transactions notably in e-commerce, enterprise software, or healthtech sectors as an advisor or investor, Guillaume has developed a strong expertise and demonstrated a relentless readiness to step into the trenches alongside entrepreneurs to support them along their structuration, funding and M&A efforts

Antoine Servant

Co-founder & COO at Naboo

Antoine Servant is Co-Founder and COO of Naboo, an AI-native event planning platform, where he oversees Partnerships, Event Operations, Finance Operations and Fintech. His role focuses on hands-on operational leadership to scale the platform’s operations, partner ecosystem and financial architecture. Before Naboo, he built his background in financial services and in consulting at Oliver Wyman, where he met one of his co-founders. He travels frequently to Barcelona, where Naboo opened an office last year.  

Santiago Muguruza

Head at BBVA Spark

Santiago Muguruza leads BBVA Spark, a role through which he drives the development of the entrepreneurial and investment ecosystem in key markets for the Group. His professional career has been closely linked to BBVA, where he has held senior positions in areas such as listed company investment, venture capital, investor relations, and corporate strategy. Muguruza holds a degree in Business Administration and Management from the University of Deusto.

Confirmed Attendees

Acurio Ventures

Adara Ventures

AENU

Atómico

Bit2me

Big Sur Ventures

BizAway

Bob W

Bonsai Partners

Busup

Casafari

Cathay Innovation

Cooltra

CoverManager

Clikalia

Crescenta

Criptan

Cuimo

Dexory

DN Capital

Draper B1

Elaia

Fence

Float

GoHub Ventures

Heura

HV Capital

Indico Capital

Infravia

iPronics

JME Venture Capital

Kfund

Kibo Ventures

Lanes & Planes

Lookiero

Magnific

Maisa

Mitiga

Mundi Ventures

Naboo

Nauta Capital

Notion Capital

Open Cosmos

Paack

Partech

Perk

Planqc

PLD Space

Redalfine

Seaya

SeQura

Sesame

Shakers

Speedinvest

TaxDownn

Twinco Capital

United Ventures

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Three ways to get the most out of the BBVA Spark Summit

The Atelier Stage

In a constantly evolving market, the future isn’t predicted: it’s built, with vision, rigor and craft. At The Atelier Stage, we’ll explore what it takes to build companies capable of competing globally from Europe, how AI and deep tech are driving a new wave of innovation, and which decisions make the difference at a company’s defining moments.

Los Tinglados

More than a century ago, the arrival of steamships transformed the port of Barcelona. ‘Los Tinglados’ were born of a new era, spaces where, with new tools, knowledge and craft, work was done to make change possible.

Today, they once again bring together those who build and create: founders, investors and tech companies using the tools of our time to shape what’s coming. The tools evolve. The ambition to create something new remains.

Your Summit plan

Like a cyanotype, every encounter and every conversation leaves its mark. Use the BBVA Spark Summit 2026 app to create a tailored experience: organize your agenda, book 1-to-1 meetings and find the founders and investors you want to connect with. The plan is open. Start giving them shape.

The future doesn't just happen. We build it together.

After eight editions, BBVA Spark Summit continues to establish itself as the place where the future of the entrepreneurial ecosystem is shaped.