CaixaBank SA plans to take a prudent approach in granting loans in its 2019-2021 strategic plan to be published in November to help protect itself against future shocks, the bank's CEO Gonzalo Gortázar was quoted by Expansión as saying.

The strategic plan will be based on economic growth of 2% or higher over the next three years, but despite this, the bank will continue to be careful with its lending strategy because at some point there will be another recession, the paper quoted Gortázar as saying.

"What happens in the coming years could be the seed of problems in the future," he said.

Gortázar also said he expected more consolidation in the European banking sector but not immediately.