Grifols prepares to make the leap to Wall Street

Movements at the top of Grifols in the United States. These movements suggest that the Catalan hemoderivatives company continues with its intention to take part of its biopharmaceutical business in the North American country to the stock market. Another move this week has been the announcement that the director of the State Tax Agency, Soledad Fernández, will leave her post, which has occurred just as the income tax campaign is closing.

Felipe Palacios

Vice President of Biopharma for Grifols in the USA

Grifols reorganizes the structure of its biopharmaceutical business, which contributes the most to the company's revenue. As announced in a statement, it will create "differentiated organizations" for biopharma for the United States, the Catalan company's main market, and for the rest of the world. According to the pharmaceutical company, this move serves to "further strengthen the operational and financial independence of the subsidiaries." Behind this operation lies the company's intention to take its US biopharmaceutical subsidiary public. With this move, plasma collected in the United States will be used to cover the country's market, while that extracted in the rest of the world will go to the European market and other environments where the company operates.

Grifols' biopharmaceutical business in the US is the largest in the sector, with nearly 300 plasma donation centers and two major industrial plants. It should be noted that, recently, it has sought to diversify plasma procurement and the processing of plasma-derived medicines. It has done so, to a large extent, through the expansion of its joint initiative with the Egyptian government, Grifols Egypt for Plasma Derivatives, which will mobilize a total investment of 460 million euros.

As part of the reorganization, Grifols has appointed Felipe Palacios as the new senior vice president of biopharma for the United States. Palacios, with over 25 years of industry experience, will lead commercial operations in the country. The head of the biopharma business in the rest of the world will be senior vice president of the segment, Thierry Heinrich. According to the non-executive chairwoman of the multinational, Anne-Cathrine Berner, the change serves to "build a more efficient, resilient, and profitable operating model." "The autonomy of the platforms will strengthen execution and accelerate decision-making," she added.

Soledad Fernández

Leave the Tax Agency

The Director General of the Spanish Tax Agency (AEAT), Soledad Fernández, will leave her post soon after requesting her replacement at the head of the organization months ago. The Ministry of Finance, led by Minister Arcadi España, has stated that the Director of the Tax Agency, after doing a "great job" for four years at the head of the organization, requested a replacement months ago and it was agreed to postpone any changes until the end of the income tax campaign.

Soledad Fernández's departure will coincide with the departure of the directors of collection and financial and tax inspection, who applied months ago for positions as finance counselors in different embassies, a process that has not yet been resolved, which is why they are still in their positions. All this comes at a time when, according to the Treasury, the key elements of the 2024-2027 strategic plan, which was launched in the first phase of Fernández's tenure at the head of the AEAT, are considered complete or finalized.

Soledad Fernández took charge of the Tax Agency in June 2022, when she was appointed Director General to replace Jesús Gascón, who subsequently took up the position of Secretary of State for Finance. Born in Madrid, Fernández holds a degree in Law from the Pontifical University of Comillas-ICADE and is a State Tax Inspector. She has extensive experience in management within the Tax Agency, as she was the Special Delegate of the AEAT in Madrid from July 2, 2018. She has also served as President of the Central Economic-Administrative Court, Director of the Tax Management Department of the AEAT, Director of the School of Public Finance, Director in Spain of the EURO 2022 Campaign of the European Central Bank, and Deputy Director of Information and Assistance to the Taxpayer in the Tax Management Department of the Tax Agency. She has also held the position of Special Delegate of the AEAT in Asturias, Deputy Special Delegate of the AEAT in Madrid, Economic-Financial Director at the Instituto de Empresa, and has held other positions in the Ministry of Finance and the Tax Agency.

LLYC

Reduction of the board of directors

A few days ago, it was reported in these pages that the former Minister of Business of the Generalitat, Àngels Chacón, was leaving her position at the consultancy LLYC to go and design the strategy for the Foundation for Industry. Changes continue at LLYC and, this very week, it has emerged that the general shareholders' meeting has approved the reduction of its board of directors from ten to eight members as part of its restructuring plan, guided by the simplification of its structure and reduction of operating costs. The company has indicated that the composition of the board maintains the balance between executive, shareholder, and independent directors, thereby complying with corporate governance regulations.

In this regard, the board has approved the incorporation of Mara Llorente to the governing body, while Mónica Vidal, Ana Busto, Barrie Berg, and Adolfo Corujo are leaving the board. The general shareholders' meeting has approved, in addition to the changes in the structure of the board of directors, the annual accounts for 2025 and the election of Deloitte as the company's new auditor for the next three years.

Judith Viader

Entrepreneur Woman Leadership Award

Judith Viader i Codina, CEO of Frit Ravich, received the Woman Entrepreneur Leadership Award at the XXXV FEDEPE Awards. With this recognition, the Spanish Federation of Women Managers, Executives, Professionals and Entrepreneurs highlights a business career that has positioned Frit Ravich among the leading companies in the food sector and thesnacking, driving a growth model based on innovation, operational excellence, and talent development.

The jury has particularly highlighted his ability to lead the generational change and transform a family business into a business group with national and international presence, while keeping intact the values that have accompanied the company since its foundation. Under his leadership, Frit Ravich closed 2025 with a record turnover of 359 million euros, 8% more than the previous year and accumulated growth of 37% since 2022. Today the company has nearly 1,300 professionals, 38 commercial delegations and a subsidiary in France, combining the manufacturing of its own brands with the distribution of some of the main national and international brands in the sector.

Sergio Sáez

'Country Leader' for Oracle in Spain

Sergio Sáez has held the new position of Country Leader at Oracle in Spain since July 1st. Until now, Sáez held the position of vice president and leader of the Database Platform business at Oracle Iberia. With extensive experience in the technology sector, Sáez has held various management positions within Oracle, focusing his work on the digital transformation of companies and public organizations through innovative data management and cloud computing solutions. Just before his appointment, Sáez led the strategy and business development of database platforms in Spain and Portugal, helping clients modernize their infrastructures and enhance the value of their data. His commitment to excellence and deep knowledge of the technology market have established him as a benchmark in the field of information technologies on the Iberian Peninsula. From his position as Senior Vice President Oracle Spain, Albert Triola will work closely with the new Country Leader, and will continue to be a key pillar in the organization.