Alantra’s Francisco de Juan on European small cap equities
INTERVIEWSERIES
Francisco de Juan, Managing Partner & EQMC Chief Investment Officer, Alantra EQMC Asset Management
May 2026
In this exclusive interview, Francisco discusses what makes European small caps an attractive hunting ground for investors. He explains the valuation gap that exists between European small caps relative to both, history and large cap peers and the role of M&A activity in accelerating returns within the asset class. He also shares his thoughts on the industry verticals within small caps that offer the highest potential for attractive returns.
Watch the full interview which covers:
00:17 - What makes European small caps a structurally attractive hunting ground for investors?
00:47 - What are your thoughts on the valuation gap between European small caps vs both history and their large cap peers?
01:40 - In which industry verticals within the small cap space do you see the highest potential for attractive returns?
02:09 - How does active ownership help accelerate value creation, and particularly in the small cap segment?
02:56 - How does M&A activity (both buy- and sell-side) play a role in accelerating returns within small caps?
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Francisco de Juan, Managing Partner & EQMC Chief Investment Officer, Alantra EQMC Asset Management
Francisco is an active investor in European public equities. He is the CIO of the EQMC Fund since its 2010 inception and Managing Partner of Alantra EQMC Asset Management.
With over 25 years of cross-disciplinary experience, Francisco combines extensive expertise in active investing in public equities with his background as a top-ranked equity research analyst (Cheuvreux), investment banker (Lehman Brothers) and a small-time as an auditor. He is a strong believer of deep-dive fundamental analysis and holds a vast experience constructively engaging with European small/mid-caps. The EQMC fund has been granted multiple international awards under his watch in recent years due to its top performance.
Francisco holds a double degree in Law & Business in ICADE (E-3), Madrid (Spain). He collaborates as a lecturer at the IE Business School teaching his course on “creating value through active ownership“. He has participated in several nomination committees for EQMC’s portfolio companies. He currently serves as a board member at Guala Closures.
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