FUNDACIÓN HISPÁNICA IN NUMBERS
Beneficiaries in numbers
At Fundación Hispánica, a non-profit organization promoted by bankers, the primary option for assisting those in need is, as far as possible, a loan, tailored to the repayment ability of the beneficiary. Sometimes, the assistance might be just technical advice before a loan. Sometimes, however, the only viable path is a donation.
Luis Valls, who was the CEO and later the vice president and president of Banco Popular for nearly five decades, established Fundación Hispánica to receive, manage, and apply resources (received through donations, legacies, grants, fiduciary arrangements, or personal contributions) aimed at the common good in the broadest sense.
The focus is on the individual and on the concern for solid cultural promotion and the improvement of professional expertise at all levels: the overarching motive is to help to train individuals through study and talent development.
All these aids should be conceived as “the last resort” to complete funding after approaching other sources. Lending rather than giving reflects the desire to promote a culture of effort to multiply aid effectiveness and allow repayments to be allocated to new loans.
The usual form of Fundación Hispánica’s aid is refundable loans (with terms, interests, and guarantees adapted to the beneficiaries’ needs), study aid (with redemption of part of the loan based on academic performance), and non-refundable aid, usually under a “co-payment” scheme, with the beneficiary contributing a percentage of the project’s cost.
It is worth noting that the Foundation’s resources come mainly from three sources: returns on assets (dividends and interest); donations, legacies, and bequests, sometimes designated for specific purposes; and repayments from beneficiaries who, as agreed, progressively return the aid received.
Fundación Hispánica, from 1975 to 2024
The graphs below describe the aid granted by Fundación Hispánica over almost fifty years (from 1975 to today), distinguishing between the supported projects, specific beneficiaries by different areas, types of aid, and the countries reached. From 1975 to 2024 the Fundación Hispánica supported 2,704 beneficiaries, for a total of €141,388,131.38.
Beneficiaries by area
Of these beneficiaries, more than half are students, with the rest divided among individuals and entities dedicated to youth and education (395 people); individuals and entities focused on culture and research (379); diocesan institutions or religious groups (293); and, finally, individuals and entities dedicated to social welfare and development cooperation (190).
Projects by field
When measuring these aids by the areas in which the projects have developed, we see that students represent 40%. Following them are individuals and entities dedicated to youth and education (22%); next, individuals and entities focused on culture and research (15%); diocesan institutions and religious groups (13%); and, finally, individuals and entities dedicated to social welfare and development cooperation (10%).
Expenditures by area
If we look at expenditures by area, Fundación Hispánica devoted 42% of its aid expenditures to education and youth, and 25% to social action and development cooperation (25%). The remaining 33% was used for aid to culture and research (15%), directly to students (10%), and to religious and diocesan institutions (8%).
Expenditures by aid type
Fundación Hispánica primarily provides two types of aid: refundable, in the form of loans or soft financing, and non-refundable, i.e., donations (usually under co-payment and loan redemption schemes). According to data accumulated since 1975, the Foundation has distributed the two types of aid almost equally: 47% in loans (more than €66 million) and 53% in donations (almost €75 million).
Geographical distribution of expenditures
Being a foundation whose focus and origin are in Spain, most aid has been granted to people and entities within our country. 80% of the aid expenditures were destined for Spain, followed at a great distance by the Democratic Republic of Congo, with 11% of the aid.
Only three countries received more than 1% of the aid in addition to these two: Costa Rica (4%), Côte d’Ivoire (2.5%), and Brazil (1%). By continent, Europe received the most aid (80.56%), followed by Africa (13.2%), South America (6.2%), and Asia (0.01%).
