At first glance, it has nothing special. There is no big sign announcing its presence or a constant stream of people coming in and out. Just a ramp with a nondescript entrance that reads Grupo Inviam in a basement of an independent building.
Dozens of people from Madrid pass by every day without imagining that, just a 10-minute drive from the Santiago Bernabéu stadium, is one of the safest places in the capital. A private bunker where not only money is kept, but also what, for many, is worth much more.
Inherited jewelry, wills, deeds, watches, gold bars, hard drives with sensitive information, collections, business documents, or family mementos. Everything that worries about leaving at home ends up finding refuge between concrete and steel walls designed to withstand any threat.
Behind this fortress is the Inviam group - which means impregnable in Latin - a 100% Spanish company that decided to create an independent model, focused on the private custody of goods and documents.
The idea arose during the 2008 banking crisis when users began losing trust in banks, and then David Sacristán, CEO of the company, posed the following question: "Why should only these entities have safety deposit boxes?".
The entrepreneur began to investigate and found out that legally it was possible for a private company to offer this type of service and improve it. This was added to the closing of numerous bank branches, which began leaving thousands of customers without service who used their compartments.
In this way, Sacristán, along with a group of investors, founded the company in 2013 with the idea of offering safety deposit boxes with extended public service hours - from Monday to Saturday - and more flexible rates.
Although it may seem otherwise, this is not a service only for millionaires, as prices are quite affordable for all audiences. For one euro a day, a safety deposit box can be rented, which means an amount of 30 euros per month, including insurance of 25,000 euros expandable according to each client's needs.
The boxes are available in three sizes: small ones measure 10 centimeters high by 30 wide and 50 deep; medium ones, 20 high; and large ones, 30. "It is not a resource for the privileged. Before, it was the banks that chose the users and only selected people with high assets. Now, the customer profile has changed a lot. We grow by 25% each year," explains Sacristán.
In fact, demand soars during the summer months, when many families look for a secure place to safeguard their belongings while on vacation. More and more people turn to this service because they have their home under renovation, share an apartment, exchange their home, have just inherited, or want to protect their belongings from the fear of theft.
The first headquarters of the business was located in Plaza de San Juan de la Cruz until it moved to the new location on Calle de Puerto Rico in 2023, an area that is well connected. Of course, the most important thing in a center of this kind is the strong security measures, so the entrance ramp has metal beams to prevent ram-raiding.
The building structure combines reinforced concrete with high-strength steel and incorporates seismic detectors capable of alerting to any drilling attempt, video surveillance systems, and patrol corridors. The complex also has a technological infrastructure prepared to continue operating in extraordinary situations.
Therefore, at the entrance, the client must first pass through biometric filters for facial and hand geometry recognition. Grupo Inviam uses a technology uncommon outside maximum security facilities: reading the vein pattern of the hand.
This system not only identifies the person but also verifies that they are alive at that moment, preventing any attempt at impersonation using photographs, molds, or reproductions.
After passing this initial filter, the security center employee retrieves the user's file with their visit sheet for them to sign the date and time. Once inside, the client is always accompanied by a staff member, who must pass through a second airlock with their fingerprint.
The next step is to reach the vault room with a 1,600-kilo door, which opens in the mornings with a special key and code. To use the safety deposit boxes, two keys are required: the client's key and the employee's verification key.
Once the compartment is opened, the user can only stay inside the vault room for five minutes, and if more time is needed, they can move to an adjacent room. When they finish reviewing their items, they call through the intercom for a company worker to come and collect them.
"What the client stores is confidential and their responsibility. We have a relationship of trust with them because we have been dedicated to this business for 13 years," concludes Sacristán.