900 candidates are applying for 25 positions at the Bank of Spain's new innovation center in Barcelona.

MadridThe Governor of the Bank of Spain, José Luis Escrivá, said this Wednesday that he is confident that the process for recruiting positions for the bank's new innovation center in Barcelona will be resolved "in the coming months." According to the agency, there are 25 positions for technology professionals, for which 900 people have already applied. However, the bank does not rule out the possibility of expanding the number of positions. The Bank of Spain has already signed an agreement with the Barcelona SuperComputing Center. to collaborate in promoting the implementation of artificial intelligence in the financial sector.

Escrivá has explained the restructuring he has launched at the Bank of Spain. The organization has been in the spotlight for over a week following the presentation of its annual report for the 2024 financial year and the few references to it in the Spanish government's pension reform, as well as the resignation, a few days later, of of who coordinates this document: The agency's director of economics and statistics, Ángel Gavilán, who will leave his post on June 12.

There is also a profound internal reorganization, with the publication of the 2030 strategic plan, which, among other issues, includes a restructuring of the general directorate of economics, the department that encompasses the Bank of Spain's research service, responsible for preparing the reports.

For all these reasons, in recent days the media spotlight has been on the entity's governor, former Socialist minister José Luís Escrivá, who for the first time has defended himself against voices that have pointed to political interference in the institution. "I have led teams of economists and research services for more than 35 years. If there is anyone qualified in Spain to carry out a reform of this type and seek the highest standards for how the economy works, it is me," Escrivá stated this Wednesday during the presentation of the strategic plan.

From now on, the Directorate General for Economics will have two departments instead of four. "This doesn't mean streamlining," said Escrivá, who noted that until now, "tasks overlapped, and adequate synergies weren't achieved, nor was the evaluation [research process] sufficiently explained."

Neutrality regarding economic policy

Escrivá has linked the restructuring of the departments outlined in the strategic plan to adapting the Bank of Spain's mandate to oversee price stability and the proper functioning of the financial system. However, this body has never avoided assessments linked to the macroeconomic context, nor has it avoided assessments on economic policy: the minimum wage, pensions, and the working day, among others.

Until now, therefore, it has been common for annual reports to include economic policy recommendations addressed to the Spanish government. In fact, among these prescriptions, those that focused on the pension system and its sustainability and, consequently, on the necessary reforms stood out. However, in the 2024 report, unlike usual, they have glossed over the matter, and there is no reason to think that the trend will change for now. "I will make as little noise as possible [on pensions]," said Escrivá, who, as former Minister of Social Security under Pedro Sánchez, was the architect of the last major reform.

Escrivá has used two arguments to defend this shift: first, that the Bank of Spain should only publish assessments on in-depth analyses. The other argument is that, in his view, the institution should under no circumstances make economic policy recommendations that involve a redistribution of the population's income, whether through taxes (with more taxes) or public spending (for example, recommending containment). "The Bank of Spain lacks legitimacy. This should be decided by governments and Parliament," said Escrivá. In fact, in the specific case of pensions, Escrivá has left it in the hands of the Fiscal Authority, which was mandated to periodically oversee the last major reform.