In the best practice manual for making a presentation to investors, the famous ‘pitch deck‘, it’s common to include information about market size and the founders’ exit strategy. It’s true that in early stages, it’s bold to think about who will acquire us when we haven’t yet validated the problem we’re solving or proven that users are willing to pay for the solution. However, for venture capital, it’s necessary to understand how big the pie is and who will want the slice that the startup aspires to take.
In a well-established entrepreneurial ecosystem like Spain, with internationally known hubs such as Madrid, Barcelona, or Valencia; unicorns like eDreams, Travelperk, Wallapop, or Fever (founded by Pep Gómez from Castellón); and companies listed on Nasdaq like Wallbox or Flywire (founded by Iker Marcaide from Valencia); the major exits to date often exceed the iconic €1 billion mark.
We review the major buyouts of Spanish tech companies, as collected by the Bankinter Foundation’s Startups Observatory. These are the largest startup sales in Spain:
Top 10 startup exits in Spain
1. Idealista
– Buyer: Cinven Fund (British investment fund)
– Transaction volume: €2.9 billion for 70% of the company.
– Description: Idealista is a digital classified ads platform in the real estate sector, connecting buyers and renters with properties.
– Founders: Jesús Encinar, Fernando Encinar, and César Oteiza
– Headquarters: Madrid
2. Wallbox
– Buyer: Nasdaq listing through a SPAC.
– Transaction volume: Valuation above $1.5 billion.
– Description: Company dedicated to designing and manufacturing charging solutions for electric vehicles.
– FounDers: Enric Asunción and Eduard Castañeda
– Headquarters: Barcelona
3. Adamo
– Buyer: Ardian (French investment fund)
– Transaction volume: Approximately €1 billion (2021).
– Description: Telecommunications company specializing in the installation of fiber optics in rural areas.
– Founder: Fredrik Gillström
– Headquarters: Barcelona
4. Glovo
– Buyer: Delivery Hero (German home delivery company)
– Transaction volume: €780 million (2022), raising the company’s valuation to €2.3 billion.
– Description: Delivery platform for various products, including food, groceries, and more.
– Founders: Oscar Pierre and Sacha Michaud
– Headquarters: Barcelona
5. H2B2
– Buyer: Merged with SPAC RMG Acquisition Corp III
– Transaction volume: The deal values H2B2 at around $750 million.
– Description: Company developing green hydrogen solutions through water electrolysis.
– Founders: Fernando Palacín and Pablo Santamarta
– Headquarters: Seville
6. AlienVault
– Buyer: AT&T (American telecommunications company)
– Transaction volume: $600 million (2018)
– Description: Cybersecurity firm specializing in threat detection and response.
– Founder: Julio Casal
– Headquarters: Madrid
7. Rastreator
– Buyer: Red Ventures
– Transaction volume: €560 million (2020)
– Description: Price comparison site for financial and insurance products.
– Founder: Elena Betés
– Headquarters: Madrid
8. Ya.com
– Buyer: Deutsche Telekom
– Transaction volume: €550 million (2000)
– Description: Internet and telecommunications services provider.
– Founder: Martin Varsavsky
– Headquarters: Madrid
9. Privalia
– Buyer: Vente-Privee (French e-commerce platform)
– Transaction volume: €500 million (2016).
– Description: Online private sales platform for fashion and other products.
– Founders: Lucas Carné and José Manuel Villanueva
– Headquarters: Barcelona
10. Busuu
– Buyer: Chegg (American educational company).
– Transaction volume: €385 million (2021).
– Description: Online language learning platform.
– Founders: Bernhard Niesner and Adrian Hilti
– Headquarters: Madrid
Valencian startup Flywire, the first spanish startup to ho public on Nasdaq
Flywire’s absence from the ranking is surprising, but it’s only due to the technicality of having its corporate headquarters located in Boston, USA.
For the sake of statistical accuracy, since it is not a Spanish startup, we cannot count it in the ‘Top 10’, although its founder Iker Marcaide is a renowned Valencian entrepreneur and the company has offices in Valencia.
Additionally, on its debut day on the U.S. stock market (IPO), the company’s shares rose from $24 to $35, pushing its market capitalization to nearly $3.4 billion, or around €2.8 billion at the exchange rate.
Candidates for the ranking of biggest startup sales in Spain
The uncertainty caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and the inflationary surge in the following years has reduced the investment flow into startups, correcting valuations and even taking down companies that couldn’t close new funding rounds. That journey through the desert, which coined the term ‘camel’ versus ‘unicorn’, has now hit bottom, and investment is bouncing back strongly as central banks ease interest rates.
With this more optimistic outlook, the likelihood of high-quality M&A deals increases rather than those driven by necessity. Therefore, it is likely that the current club of Spanish startups sold for the highest amounts will welcome new members. These are the main candidates to break into that top:
Typeform
– Description: Interactive survey and form platform aimed at improving user experience.
– Founders: Robert Muñoz and David Okuniev
– Headquarters: Barcelona
– Potential buyer: Large software companies like Microsoft or Salesforce.
– Valuation: In its last funding round in 2022, Typeform raised $135 million, reaching a valuation of $935 million, close to unicorn status.
Cabify
– Description: On-demand transport platform, competitor of Uber and Bolt in Spain and Latin America.
– Founder: Juan de Antonio
– Headquarters: Madrid
– Potential buyer: Global transport companies or private equity firms.
– Valuation: In its last funding round, Cabify reached a valuation of approximately $1.4 billion, solidifying its place as one of Spain’s unicorns.
Fever
– Description: Event and experience discovery platform.
– Founder: Pep Gómez (Castellón)
– Headquarters: Madrid
– Potential buyer: Entertainment companies or experience platforms like Eventbrite.
– Valuation: After its latest funding round in 2023, Fever was valued at $1.8 billion, with notable growth in Europe and the U.S.
Jobandtalent
– Description: Digital employment platform connecting temporary workers with companies.
– Founders: Juan Urdiales and Felipe Navío
– Headquarters: Madrid
– Potential buyer: HR companies or temporary staffing firms like Adecco or Randstad.
– Valuation: In 2023, Jobandtalent reached a valuation of $2.35 billion, after raising over $500 million across multiple funding rounds.
TravelPerk
– Description: Corporate travel management platform.
– Founders: Avi Meir and Javier Suárez
– Headquarters: Barcelona
– Potential buyer: Travel management companies or large corporate travel agencies.
– Valuation: TravelPerk closed a $115 million round in 2022, reaching a valuation of $1.3 billion.
Factorial
– Description: Human resources management platform for SMEs.
– Founders: Jordi Romero, Bernat Farrero, and Pau Ramón
– Headquarters: Barcelona
– Potential buyer: HR software companies like SAP or Workday.
– Valuation: Factorial raised $120 million in its latest investment round in 2023, giving it a valuation of $1 billion.
Wallapop
– Description: Marketplace for buying and selling second-hand products.
– Founders: Agustín Gómez and Gerard Olivé
– Headquarters: Barcelona
– Potential buyer: Large marketplaces like eBay or Mercado Libre.
– Valuation: After an €87 million funding round in 2022, Wallapop reached a valuation of €771 million.
Paack
– Description: Logistics solutions platform for e-commerce.
– Founder: Fernando Benito
– Headquarters: Barcelona
– Potential buyer: Logistics companies or major retailers.
– Valuation: Paack raised $200 million in a 2022 round, reaching a valuation close to $1 billion.
Valencian scaleups that could lead to million-dollar exits
Flywire is the most representative example of a Valencian-origin startup that has carried out one of the largest public sale operations in the national landscape, with the previously explained exception of its headquarters being abroad.
Many Valencian companies aspire to repeat that success, whether through an IPO or an M&A. These are the main startups in our ecosystem that could be part of a significant deal:
Zeleros
– Description: Startup developing a hyperloop transport system, a new form of ultra-fast, safe, and efficient transportation.
– Founders: David Pistoni, Juan Vicén, and Daniel Orient.
– Headquarters: Valencia
– Potential buyer: Large transport or infrastructure companies, like Siemens, Alstom, Stadler, etc.
Quibim
– Description: Company dedicated to advanced medical imaging and biomedical data analysis using artificial intelligence.
– Founder: Ángel Alberich-Bayarri
– Headquarters: Valencia
– Potential buyer: Health technology companies like Philips or Siemens Healthineers.
Sheetgo
– Description: SaaS tool that enables workflow automation using spreadsheets and other business tools.
– Founders: Yannick Rault, Rafael Vidal, Chad Pittman, and Jonatan Gomes Da Silva
– Headquarters: Valencia
– Potential buyer: Enterprise software companies like Google or Microsoft.
Digit-S
– Description: Startup developing advanced machine vision solutions for industrial process automation.
– Founder: Vicent Escrig
– Headquarters: Castellón
– Potential buyer: Industrial automation companies.
Bit2Me
– Description: Bit2Me is a cryptocurrency exchange platform that allows users to buy, sell, and manage cryptocurrencies easily and securely. It’s one of Spain’s leading platforms in the crypto ecosystem, offering services to both individual and institutional investors.
– Founders: Leif Ferreira and Andrei Manuel
– Headquarters: Alicante
– Potential buyer: Large cryptocurrency exchanges like Coinbase or Binance, or financial institutions looking to enter the crypto asset space.
Also noteworthy are the following scaleups, which have led the main investment rounds in 2024 within the Valencian startup ecosystem:
Sesame HR
– Description: Sesame HR is a software platform for human resource management, offering tools to manage time tracking, shift planning, personnel administration, and more. With an intuitive interface, it’s mainly used by SMEs to optimize their human capital management.
– Founders: Nacho Travesí and Javi Sanz
– Headquarters: Valencia
– Potential buyer: HR software companies like Workday, Personio, or SaaS platforms focused on business management. Latest investment round: €23 million (2024).
Kenmei Technologies
– Description: Kenmei Technologies develops AI-based solutions for network analysis and management in telecommunications. Its main product, ADELE, helps telecom operators automate network management, optimize performance, and improve decision-making.
– Founders: Vicent Soler and Alfonso Aguado
– Headquarters: Valencia
– Potential buyer: Major telecommunications companies like Ericsson, Nokia, or network integrators interested in improving automation and AI applied to telecommunications.
– Latest investment round: €4 million (2024).
Imperia SCM
– Description: Imperia SCM develops specialized software for optimizing supply chains for large companies. Its technology allows for more efficient inventory management and real-time visibility of logistics and distribution.
– Founders: María Gil and Raúl Díaz
– Headquarters: Valencia
– Potential buyer: Logistics and supply chain software companies like SAP, Oracle, or firms specializing in supply chain management.
– Latest investment round: €3 million (2024).
Internxt
– Description: Internxt offers a cloud storage service focused on data privacy and security, using blockchain to safeguard information. It competes with giants like Google Drive and Dropbox but with a focus on users prioritizing privacy.
– Founder: Fran Villalba Segarra
– Headquarters: Valencia
– Potential buyer: Cybersecurity companies or large cloud storage platforms like Google or Dropbox interested in blockchain technology applied to storage.
– Latest investment round: €3 million (2024).
Kokoro Kids
– Description: Kokoro Kids is an educational app for children that uses games and AI to develop cognitive and emotional skills. It’s used in schools and by parents to support early childhood learning in key areas like math, literacy, and socio-emotional skills.
– Founders: Carles Pons and Claudia de la Riva
– Headquarters: Valencia
– Potential buyer: Tech companies and educational platforms like Google for Education, Pearson, LEGO, interested in AI-based solutions for children’s learning.
– Latest investment round: €2.25 million (2024).
Wenalyze
– Description: Wenalyze uses big data and advanced analytics to help insurers and banks assess risks for small and medium-sized businesses. Its technology provides financial companies with real-time data to improve decision-making and reduce risks.
– Founders: Carlos Albo and Luis Fuster
– Headquarters: Valencia
– Potential buyer: Financial software companies or insurers like Zurich or Aon in
