In a special session held today, the board of directors of the Banco Sabadell took the decision to move the bank's corporate headquarters from Catalonia to Alicante ahead of a possible unilateral declaration of independence by the Catalan Regional Government over the coming days.
This change of headquarters guarantees that the bank will remain under the regulatory umbrella of the European Central Bank (ECB) in the case of a split, which in turn guarantees the interests of shareholders, clients and employees regardless of the scenario.
The move also means that corporation tax will be paid in Alicante, rather than in Catalonia.
CaixaBank has also announced a similar extraordinary meeting of its board of directors for tomorrow, in order to debate a possible move of its corporate headquarters out of Catalonia.
In view of the escalating crisis in Catalonia, central government has agreed a legal modification allowing companies to move their headquarters immediately without having to get shareholders' agreement for the move.
An official spokesperson for CaixaBank confirmed today that the bank would make the "necessary decisions, at the appropriate point in time, always bearing in mind the best interests of their clients, shareholders and employees".
The Balearic Islands are being considered as one possible location for the new CaixaBank headquarters.
Grupo Catalana Occidente is another company considering a move away from Catalonia. The insurance giant has circulated a letter to all its employees, assuring them that the company will take the necessary measures to guarantee that they can continue to carry out their work in a "normal, stable environment with legal and economic security".
The letter has been signed by company president José María Serra Farré, who has made it clear that his priority is "to ensure the best interests of his clients, employees, intermediaries and shareholders". He maintained that the group would do everything to ensure that its products and services "were in no way affected by the political and social situation". In a press release issued today, the Grupo Catalana Occidente underlined the fact that it operated in more than 50 countries and had been in existence for more than 150 years and that it had, over the course of its long history, faced many different and complex situations.
(Photo - the president of the Banco de Sabadell, Josep Oliu)
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