A new hybrid model for chambers of commerce in Spain? Explaining the impact of European programs on the modernization of Barcelona Chamber of Commerce

Background: Spanish chambers of commerce are in a period of transition from a public model towards a hybrid model of chambers. In the context of a financial crisis, both socialist and conservative governments promoted new rules that ended the obligation for companies to join local chambers and pay the mandatory fee. The previous literature points out that the introduction of new rules led to the growing participation of multinational companies in the governing bodies of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce at the state level. However, there has been no empirical analysis of how local chambers have adapted their structures and activities to the new legal framework after losing their main source of income (i.e., the mandatory fee). Research purpose: This article analyzes the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce’s (BCC) annual budgets for the period 2013–2023. The budgetary dimension is of particular relevance for the transition towards a hybrid model of chambers since the 2014 law established that the provision of services to companies is the main source of financing for local chambers. Our article quantifies and analyzes the origin of BCC’s annual income, with the aim of identifying the relative weight of public funding, especially European funds Methods: This article analyzes in a descriptive manner an original database of BCC’s annual budgets for the period 2013–2023, based on the audited reports that the chamber publishes on its website. We have also collected data on BCC’s participation in public programs at various levels. Conclusions: Contrary to the spirit of the 2014 law, public funding represents almost half of BCC’s annual budget in the last years of the period analyzed. Although BCC has participated directly in open calls for European Funds over the years, the Spanish Chamber of Commerce has become an essential source of income for the local chambers. Spanish chambers are now much more dependent on public funding than in the years before the introduction of new rules.