This human capital is complemented by a solid foundation of innovation, as Madrid leads the country in attracting Research and Development (R&D) funding, exceeding €6 billion—27% of all such investment nationwide.
The Regional Minister for Economy, Finance and Employment, Rocío Albert, and the Regional Minister for Digitalization, Miguel López-Valverde, attended today’s inauguration of ING’s new Technology Hub in Madrid, which was also attended by the city’s mayor, José Luis Martínez-Almeida.
This infrastructure, established by the Dutch multinational, represents a strategically significant investment for the region’s financial and technological ecosystem, reinforcing Madrid’s position as a key market for the company.
The Madrid Region is home to more than 2,100 startups that employ around 21,000 qualified professionals. At the European level, it ranks third in the development of applications and databases, and fourth in Artificial Intelligence and cybersecurity. Human capital is another of its main strengths: nearly 51% of its workforce holds a university degree—a figure that far exceeds both the national and European averages.
The innovation center inaugurated by ING is the sixth of its kind that the company has established worldwide, following those in the Philippines, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and Turkey. The hub will employ more than 1,000 people over the next four years, particularly in key areas such as software engineering, data analytics, and systems architecture. Among the innovations it will develop are enhancements to customer experience through advanced technologies such as generative artificial intelligence and voicebots.
The Madrid Region has approved 32 tax cuts, which have resulted in nearly €40 billion in savings for citizens. Since 2021, the regional government has also simplified or eliminated more than 500 unnecessary regulations and administrative barriers, and it aims to continue along this path through its new Anti-Overregulation Law. Furthermore, the region has consolidated its status as the fourth most important financial center in Europe and ranks fifth in attracting venture capital funds.