Unicaja’s board already knows José Sevilla’s decision. The non-executive chairman will remain in the post until April 2027, but will not seek another term.
Sevilla is not leaving immediately: he will complete the remainder of his term. The succession is expected to be set in motion at the next shareholders’ meeting, scheduled for spring 2027.
The handover will come after Sevilla has spent more than two years at the helm of the Málaga-based group. In the latest half-year results reported by the financial press, Unicaja recorded gross income of 1.085 billion euros and net interest income of 755 million euros. Profit reached 361 million euros.
The latest figures put the transition in context. Unicaja posted a profit of 361 million euros in the first half. The bank is operating with double-digit returns and maintains solvency close to 16%, among the strongest positions in Spanish banking.
Sevilla took over as chairman in early February 2024. He replaced Manuel Azuaga after a governance crisis that lasted more than three years following the merger with Liberbank.
His arrival ended that period of instability at the top. Since then, he has helped shape the 2025-2027 strategic plan.
The bank expects cumulative profit to exceed 1.9 billion euros by the end of the three-year period. It also expects net interest income to top 1.5 billion euros in each financial year.
The plan shifts the bank’s commercial focus: Unicaja is strengthening private banking and corporate business, while directing resources toward areas where it already has a strong position, including mortgages.
The bank is also looking to expand in consumer lending. Its strategy pairs commercial expansion with the development of Unicaja’s basic business areas.
Chief Executive Isidro Rubiales has said the 2025-2027 plan prioritizes organic growth and niche transactions. Unicaja is not considering a merger with a bank of similar or greater size, though it is studying targeted moves to accelerate growth in consumer lending or corporate business.
Dividend policy is a basic part of the plan. It sets a 95% cash pay-out, a figure that financial-sector media have described as one of the most attractive in Spanish banking.
Reports have also cited an ordinary interim dividend of 0.0844 euros per share against 2026 earnings.
The CNMV recorded a relevant notice concerning the redemption of an AT1 preferred securities issue. The move affects the bank’s liability and capital management.
Sevilla will not resign immediately and has not announced a break with the project: he has decided not to seek reappointment in April 2027.
Spain’s institutional agenda also includes the royal itinerary. That matter is unrelated to the planned change at Unicaja.
Unicaja’s shares have performed well since Sevilla took over, information from financial reports on the stock’s performance. The bank is preparing the next phase of its plan through 2027, without linking the change in chairman to another major merger.
Sevilla will remain chairman until April 2027. During that period, Unicaja will have to deliver on demanding financial targets while pursuing a different commercial strategy and maintaining a high level of dividend payments.
The available figures do not point to a weakened bank. Unicaja enters the transition with profits and solvency close to 16%. Its roadmap is defined. The change closes one chapter in the bank’s governance, while its plan continues.
