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BANKER

Luis Valls the Banker, in the words of others

Compilation of Quotes from Obituaries

“In addition to being the last banker of the big seven, he is one of those historical figures who embodied the tolerant spirit of the Spanish transition” (Antonio Gutiérrez, Spanish politician and trade unionist, was general secretary of the union Comisiones Obreras between 1987 and 2000).

“Luis Valls understood and practised the honest and austere work of banking as a service of intermediation in the relationship process between people and entities, indispensable in human society.” (Antonio Fontán, former President of the Senate)2.

” ‘From the presidency, he continued to forge his own style of banking and corporate culture, today fully ingrained, based on well-defined management criteria where professionalism in decision-making takes precedence over everything else. He transformed Popular into a purely commercial bank, customer-oriented rather than product-oriented, and made it into a benchmark in global banking for its operational efficiency and profitability,’ they say at Banco Popular. That imprint characterized Luis Valls’s life as a banker. A banking style that became his hallmark, based on the business dedicated to the traditional activity of taking public deposits and lending to clients. No industrial investments.” (Víctor Relaño, journalist)3.

“He understood banking as a service to clients and managed others’ resources with enormous prudence, avoiding risky ventures for show. The Popular we know today is fundamentally thanks to him. His work and his way of organizing others’ work (…) The spirit of Opus Dei led him to perform his work with the utmost perfection, exercising human and other virtues. The result is that of an exemplary banker.” (Juan Pablo de Villanueva, journalist).4

“Those of us who had the privilege of working with him always used to say that he was a couple of years ahead of everyone else. He liked to build the future through demanding work in the present. He was clearly ahead of his time.” (Ángel Rivera, CEO of Santander Spain)5.

“When no one talked about transparency, Luis subjected himself first and his organization later to what became one of his management maxims: everything they did could appear on the front page of newspapers.” (Guido Stein, IESE professor and EUNSA president). 6

“Luis Valls can boast of many things, but above all, of having made Banco Popular a brand synonymous with profitability in finance, one of the most competitive worlds. He also kept it independent at a time when mergers became fashionable. And he did so without the need for industrial adventures, which bled Spanish banks dry in the 1980s.” (Jesús Martín, journalist). 7

“With Luis Valls, we lose a man who has contributed from one of the most important sectors of the economy to the economic development of Spain and the consolidation of Spanish banking. A true Catalan, it never crossed his mind to remove the second surname from Banco Popular, that of Español. A true example in today’s times.” (Vicente Martínez Pujalte, politician)8.

“Luis Valls is attributed with the phrase one should only do what one knows how to do well>>. And if he didn’t say it, he certainly practised it, to the extent that he created a unique model. Valls built, from a tiny entity, one of the three major Spanish banks. Moreover, he made it one of the most profitable and efficient in the world and the leader in Spain in these parameters.” (Editorial Board, Expansión)9 .

“(…) Luis Valls transformed a small, outdated, and routine banking institution into what has become for many years the most profitable and efficient bank in Europe. His foresight, perseverance, and reforming spirit were key elements of this transformation, achieved through successive peaceful internal revolutions. He was my mentor in banking, and many of his principles and life attitudes left a profound mark on me as points of reference (…) Personally austere, his policies encouraged his collaborators to be the same. Externally impassive and resistant to enthusiasm, he was very sensitive internally to anything he believed posed a danger to the bank’s security. Deeply concerned about security, his major strategies always had a strong defensive content. Respected by all for his strategic vision and determination to make it a reality, he was often misunderstood because of his limited ability to explain his reasoning (…) An expert in designing bank structures that ensured the necessary checks and balances against potential incompetence, information concealment, or power excesses, he had a notable guiding principle: “Man is limited in his capacity, even physically.” The most frequently used mechanism under his leadership was the systematic rotation of executives, with few staying in the same position for more than three or four years” . (Aristóbulo de Juan, former director general of Banco Popular and former director general of Banco de España)10.

Bibliography

(1) Luis Valls Taberner: The story of a portrait”, published on 10/25/2004 in El Periódico de Aragón. (2) “En memoria de Luis Valls”, by Antonio Fontán (former president of the Senate) in La Tercera de ABC (27/02/2006).

(3) “Un banquero que lega un estilo de banca muy personal” by Víctor Relaño (journalist) in Gaceta de los Negocios (27/02/2006).

(4) “Luis Valls, banquero de éxito” by Juan Pablo de Villanueva (president and editor of La Gaceta) in Tribuna de Gaceta de los Negocios (27/02/2006).

(5) In memoriam “A Luis Valls” by Ángel Rivera (Former CEO of Santander Spain, former Director General of Media at Banco Popular) in Expansión (27/02/2006).

(6) “Mi homenaje” by Guido Stein (IESE professor and EUNSA president) in Expansión (27/02/2006).

(7) “El hombre que mantuvo independiente el Banco Popular” by Jesús Martín in La Razón (26/02/2006).

(8) “La banca, santo y seña de una vida” by Vicente Martínez Pujalte (deputy spokesperson of the Partido Popular) in La Razón (26/02/2006).

(9) “El hombre más ‘Popular’” in Expansión (27/02/2006). (10) ‘Luis Valls Taberner, a Year Later‘ in Cinco Días (February 26, 2007).

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