Cajastur
| Company type | Savings and loan association |
|---|---|
| Industry | Banking and financial services |
| Predecessor | Monte de Piedad y Caja de Ahorros de Oviedo (1880), Caja de Ahorros y Monte de Piedad Municipal de Gijón (merged 1946) |
| Founded | 1880 |
| Fate | Became part of Liberbank in 2011; brand retired in 2015 |
| Successor | Liberbank |
| Headquarters | Asturias , Spain |
Area served | Principality of Asturias and other locations in Spain |
Key people | César Menéndez Claverol (foundation president since 2016) |
| Products | Retail banking services, telecommunications (via TeleCable) |
| Owner | Fundación Cajastur (shareholder in Liberbank and Unicaja Banco) |
| Parent | Liberbank (since 2011) |
The Caja de Ahorros de Asturias (commonly known as Cajastur) is a savings and loan association headquartered in the Principality of Asturias. While its official business name is Caja de Ahorros de Asturias, it operates commercially under the brand Cajastur.
The institution primarily concentrates on retail banking services, catering to individual customers, local businesses, and small to medium-sized enterprises within the region.
History
The institution traces its origins back to 1880 with the establishment of Monte de Piedad y Caja de Ahorros de Oviedo. In 1946, following a merger with Caja de Ahorros y Monte de Piedad Municipal de Gijón, it adopted the name Caja de Ahorros de Asturias.
Today, Cajastur maintains approximately 200 branches throughout Asturias and an additional 40 branches in other locations. It also holds ownership of the Asturian telecommunications firm TeleCable.
On September 21, 2010, Cajastur assumed full ownership of the financial operations of Caja Castilla-La Mancha (CCM) by absorbing its assets and business into Banco Liberta, a subsidiary of Cajastur. Subsequently, Banco Liberta was renamed Banco Castilla-La Mancha, S.A., with its headquarters moved to Cuenca.
In 2011, Cajastur became part of Liberbank. On July 23, 2014, it transitioned into a banking foundation under the Law on Savings Banks and Banking Foundations. By April 2015, Liberbank announced plans to unify its operations under a single national brand, retiring the Cajastur name. As of December 31, 2020, the foundation retained a 15.86% ownership stake in Liberbank.
Manuel Menéndez stepped down as foundation president on June 30, 2016, due to legal conflicts prohibiting simultaneous board memberships in banking foundations and their affiliated banks; he was replaced by César Menéndez Claverol.
Following Liberbank’s merger with Unicaja Banco in 2021, Fundación Cajastur became a shareholder in Unicaja Banco. By July 30, 2021, the foundation owned a 6.56% equity interest in Unicaja Banco.