Spain privatised state bank Argentaria in four oversubscribed OPVs, then it became BBVA

Argentaria was constituted in 1991 to group Spain's official credit entities — BEX, BCI, BHE, BCL, BCA and Caja Postal — into the country's third-largest banking group. With public debt climbing, the government used Argentaria as the flagship of a privatisation programme that also included Telefonica and Tabacalera.

The privatisation was executed in four public offerings: May 1993 (24.99% of capital), November 1993 (23.35%, with demand 4.5 times the offer), March 1996 (25%) and February 1998 (29.2% — the state's entire remaining stake, 37.5 million shares). The final offer was subscribed 18 times globally and 26 times among retail investors.

The November 1993 second tranche alone showed the method working: demand exceeded the offer 4.5 times and the sale of 25% raised about 177 billion pesetas for the treasury, feeding a wider programme expected to generate around US$1.5 billion the following year.

The final February 1998 offer raised €2.268 billion. In 1999 Argentaria announced a merger with Banco Bilbao Vizcaya (BBV), creating BBVA — one of Europe's largest banking groups — and completing the journey from a cluster of state lenders to a private universal bank.

Four staged OPVs (1993–98) privatised Argentaria; the final tranche alone raised €2.27B, 18 times oversubscribed, before it merged with BBV to form BBVA in 1999.

Four staged offers spread supply and let the market absorb each block.

Retail-heavy structuring built a broad domestic shareholder base.

Rising demand validated pricing, culminating in 18x subscription.

Proceeds cut public debt while the bank gained market discipline.

Staging a bank privatisation across several offers builds retail demand, tests pricing and funds the treasury without dumping one huge block.

BBVA grew into one of the eurozone's largest banks, with a strong franchise in Spain and Latin America. Argentaria's staged privatisation became the template for Spain's bank sell-offs and is cited by SEPI, the state holding company, as a completed privatisation that ended with the state fully out of the group.