UK vs Spain: British firms scoop 11 trophies at the IR Euros

UK companies took home an impressive cache of 11 trophies from the IR Magazine Awards – Europe 2024 last night.

And while it might have been Slovenia vs Serbia, England vs Denmark and Spain vs Italy on the pitch, at the De Vere Grand Connaught Rooms in London it was the UK vs Spain. 

But while UK companies took the biggest haul of the night, it was Spanish firms that dominated some of the most sought-after categories.

ASML, a Dutch semiconductor firm, took the best overall investor relations trophy in the large-cap category, with MERLIN Properties and Grenergy Renovables claiming the title for mid-caps and small caps, respectively. IR professionals at the two Spanish companies also got a personal nod, with Inés Arellano winning the best investor relations officer (mid-cap) award for MERLIN Properties and Alberto Sanchez Salazar taking the small-cap trophy for his work at Grenergy Renovables – no doubt a nice feather in his cap as he left the company this month.

The best investor relations officer (large cap) award went to Graham Phillips from French firm Schneider Electric.

Another Spanish company also won two self-nomination awards: Banco Santander took the trophy for best IR website (large cap) and best retail IR strategy.

The self-nomination awards were dominated by UK companies, however, where 11 different companies, from BAT to Rolls Royce and Topps Tiles, pipped European peers to the mark across 11 categories.

The IR Magazine Awards are split into two sections. The best overall IR and best IRO winners are decided by a survey of portfolio managers, buy-side analysts and sell-side analysts who cover European companies, while the self-nomination categories are judged by a panel of IR Magazine journalists and external experts.

This year, the judging panel featured:

• Heinrich Ey, director and co-CIO for German and European mid/small caps, Allianz Global Investors
• Simon Gleadhill, head of corporate, ESG and IFRS reporting, Howden Joinery Group
• Laurie Havelock, editor, IR Magazine
• Dr Agnes Neher, head of responsible investment, Baloise Asset Management
• René Nicolodi, head of equities and deputy head of asset management, Zürcher Kantonalbank
• Madeleine Szeluch, investor relations ESG director, Novartis
• Gervais Williams, head of equities, Premier Miton Investors.

The panel judged entries from companies across Europe and the UK, with a total of 18 self-nomination awards handed out, including two categories new for 2024: best investor targeting strategy, which was won by Burberry Group, and best use of technology including AI, won by GSK.

The rising star trophy was awarded to Nick Lundvall from Hemnet.

For a full list of the winners and runners-up, please click here.