CaixaBank launches a pioneering programme to promote a pipeline of female talent in investment banking and markets

• Girls in Finance & Talent (GIFT) has been designed as a unique, high-value programme lasting up to three years, combining specialised training, high-impact practical experiences and personalised support, creating a distinctive experience in the banking sector for university students, with the aim of establishing a lasting connection between the participants and the bank
• The spirit of the programme is to spark the interest of students of business administration, economics, physics, law, mathematics or similar disciplines in the financial field through first-hand knowledge of the business and of the CaixaBank teams
• Divided into four progressive stages, it begins with an immersion and training experience for 40 students and a collaborative hackathon-style challenge
• Five leading public and private universities are collaborating in this first edition: Pompeu Fabra University, Carlos III University, ESADE, ICADE and CUNEF

CaixaBank reinforces its commitment to equal opportunities and the development of female talent with the launch of GIFT (Girls in Finance & Talent), a pioneering and strategic initiative aimed at young university students with the goal of encouraging them to join investment banking and the financial markets, key areas of the sector where the presence of women remains low. 

The spirit of the programme is to inspire vocations and create role models among students of business administration, economics, physics, law, mathematics and related degrees, providing them with exposure to the financial business through first-hand, practical knowledge of the business and of CaixaBank’s teams specialising in these areas.

GIFT was created with the aim of taking early and transformative action to help break the cycle of low female representation in financial positions, focusing on a decisive stage such as university, when professional futures are shaped. The initiative forms part of the bank’s diversity and inclusion strategy and the drive behind Wengage, the CaixaBank programme aimed at promoting equal opportunities, the inclusion of all people and the visibility of diversity in all its aspects.

In this first edition, GIFT has the collaboration of five leading public and private universities, Pompeu Fabra University, Carlos III University, ESADE, ICADE and CUNEF, and the participation of key CaixaBank areas such as Corporate & Investment Banking (CIB), Finance and People, reinforcing the cross-cutting and high-impact nature of the programme. 

According to data from the Women in Banking 2024 report, women represent 53% of the workforce in the financial sector in Spain, although they have a reduced presence in certain specialised areas and in positions of greater responsibility. With GIFT, CaixaBank takes a further step and positions itself as a driving force behind a new generation of female talent in strategic areas such as Corporate & Investment Banking and Finance. 

A comprehensive, long-term programme

GIFT has been designed as a high-value programme with a duration of up to three years that combines specialised training, practical experience and personalised support, with the aim of sparking interest in these areas and establishing a lasting connection between participants and the bank.

The programme is divided into four progressive stages:

• Immersion experience and training for 40 third- and fourth-year students from five universities, and a collaborative hackathon-style challenge. This phase will take place in Madrid on 6 and 7 March. 
• Summer internships at CaixaBank for the ten participants who win the challenge.
• Six-month paid internships the following academic year for these ten young women, focused on professional growth and the creation of value.
• The possibility of applying for CaixaBank’s New Graduate programme on completion of their university degree, one of the main entry programmes for starting a professional career in Corporate & Investment Banking and other strategic areas of the bank.

Throughout the programme, participants will have the support of leading women who have developed their professional careers in investment banking and specialised financial areas, who will provide personalised mentoring with the ultimate goal of inspiring vocations through knowledge and direct experience. In addition, GIFT is defined by its flexibility, enabling the young women to combine the programme with their university studies.

With this initiative, CaixaBank consolidates its position as a leader in diversity, equality and the promotion of talent, and reinforces its commitment to a more representative and innovative banking model aligned with current social challenges.

Agenda for 6 and 7 March

This first edition of the GIFT programme begins on Friday, 6 March, at CaixaBank’s corporate headquarters in Madrid, with a day designed as an immersive and exclusive experience in which participants will have direct contact with senior management and leading professionals from the bank. The Chief People Officer, David López, will welcome the participants and explain the initiative and its objectives. Next, Iñaki Badiola, Head of Corporate & Investment Banking, will give a presentation on his area; and Marta Noguer, Head of Investor and Shareholder Relations, will do the same for the Finance area. 

The students will also visit the Markets room and learn more about the work of CIB thanks to talks moderated by Gloria Ribas, Managing Director of Asset Finance & Structured Trade Finance; and about Finance with Meritxell Soler, Head of Shareholder Relations. They will also hear about the experiences of young CaixaBank professionals working in the areas of investment banking and markets.

The practical part of this phase of the GIFT programme will take place on Saturday, 7 March, at CaixaFórum, where the university students will take part in an intensive team-based experience to solve a realistic banking business challenge designed to expose them to the type of decisions made in a large financial institution. The hackathon-style activity, designed in collaboration with the UPF Barcelona School of Management (Pompeu Fabra University), will be an intensive and collaborative dynamic in which talent and perspective come together to tackle a practical challenge inspired by real situations in the financial sector.

The challenge has a dual purpose for the participants: to offer them a motivating experience that enables them to better understand how financial decisions are made in a large institution and to discover their affinity for this type of professional role. In addition, it is designed to enable them to demonstrate their analytical capacity, creativity, strategic vision, teamwork, judgement in decision-making and ability to communicate in an impactful way. 

Throughout the day, the students will work together to build a solid proposal and present it to an expert jury, in an environment that promotes cooperation between students from different universities and encourages an agile and rigorous approach to problem solving. The challenge will culminate with the final presentation of the solutions by the teams and the award ceremony for the two winning groups, highlighting the effort, excellence and potential of the sector’s future professionals.