The President of Sabadell Bank, Josep Oliu, warned this Thursday that the crisis caused by the pandemic of coronavirus It is a “huge challenge, of which we have no precedent” and he predicted that the entity will emerge successfully from this situation, despite the fact that will have to assume “some sacrifice“
From Alicante, where Sabadell has celebrated its Ordinary General Meeting of Shareholders In a telematic way that has lasted less than an hour, Oliu has analyzed the situation created as a result of a crisis which, unlike that of 2008, which had a financial origin, has been “caused by the same society to defend against a deadly threat“
For this reason, he has defended that the absorption of the costs of this crisis, which will depend on the duration of the restrictions approved by the governments and on the “remedies” applied, “has to be faced with maximum mutualisation“
It is a crisis, added Oliu, which is affecting the entire business fabric, SMEs, freelancers and large companiesTherefore, it is “essential” that states promote the most appropriate economic measures to help their recovery once the pandemic is overcome.
He has pointed out, in this sense, that “defending the viability of the business fabric is the best defense for the occupation and, ultimately, the best social strategy“
Oliu believes that measures announced by the Spanish Executive “They are going in the right direction”, as they not only direct public spending to alleviate the most urgent effects of the crisis, such as health and the lack of income of vulnerable families, but they are also aimed at maintaining the business fabric and entrepreneur, who “is the one who generates employment and wealth in a sustainable way.”
“Among the measures announced by the Government there are moratoriums, subsidies, guarantees and public guarantees so that the credit covers this temporary deficit of social solvency “, recalled the president of Sabadell.
Despite the difficulties of the moment, Spanish banks face the situation with greater solvency and liquidity, reason why Oliu has predicted that they will be “fundamental” so that companies and families can overcome this “shock”.
The crisis will also impact the bank and you may have to make “some sacrifice“, has recognized the president of Sabadell, who nevertheless sees” with optimism “the future thanks to the solvency of the entity and its commercial strength.
The coronavirus pandemic has focused practically all the speech that Oliu has made in this outlier board, which has been held at the bank’s headquarters in Alicante without the physical presence of shareholders or directors, who have been able to participate in it electronically, and which has lasted less than an hour.
The CEO of the bank, Jaime Guardiola, has been in charge of reviewing the bank’s economic magnitudes in the last year, in which Sabadell achieved a profit of 768 million euros, 134% more than in 2018, when its result was weighed down by problems stemming from the technological migration of its British subsidiary, TSB.
Also in reference to the coronavirus, Guardiola has indicated that it is still early to evaluate the economic impact that the current health emergency will have, although it is foreseeable that it will be “relevant”.
Oliu wanted to thank the work of all the health personnel of the country, which “with risk of contagion lives hours and hours of tension and overflowing work to serve society”, and to the bank employees, who “quietly and modestly” also dedicate hours and effort to maintain the normality of the service, despite the exceptional nature of the situation.
At the meeting the appointment from the economist Mireia Giné as a new director to replace Teresa Garcia-Milà, who will preside over Sabis, the group’s technology subsidiary.
–
