From the post-real estate crisis and the pandemic to Sabadell's 'no' in BBVA

BarcelonaIn these 15 years of the ARA, the Catalan economy, which three lustrums ago had a gross domestic product (GDP) of about 200 billion euros, has today more than 300 billion, more than 50% higher; it has experienced a total restructuring of the financial system, the flight of business headquarters with the referendum of October 1, 2017 and a fall in activity like in the Civil War due to the coronavirus crisis. This period has now ended with Banc Sabadell shareholders' refusal to accept BBVA's takeover bid, which BBVA had already attempted in 2020. But the story of this newspaper, which hit newsstands (there were still quite a few) on November 28, 2012, featuring Mois Noguera, the first Catalan born that year, on the front page, began two months after a general strike against labor reforms under the socialist José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero as Spanish Prime Minister. Following the biggest economic crisis since 1929, recovery was beginning to offer hope, but the world was reeling from the shock of the attacks on the debt of Greece and Ireland, and other countries with high deficits, including Spain.

As a consequence of the bursting of the housing bubble, by the end of 2010 there were 13 merger processes underway in the financial sector, involving 40 of the 45 savings banks in Spain. In Catalonia, ten remained, leaving five: La Caixa, Catalunya Caixa (Caixa Catalunya, Caixa Manresa, and Caixa Tarragona), Unnim (Sabadell, Terrassa, and Manlleu), Caixa Penedès, which merged into Mare Nostrum; and Caixa Laietana, which joined the group led by Caja Madrid. La Caixa absorbed Caixa Girona.

The following year, 2011, brought an end to many economic uncertainties, some linked to the future of the euro. At the International Monetary Fund (IMF), French Economy Minister Christine Lagarde replaced Dominique Strauss-Kahn, who was embroiled in a sex scandal. Mario Draghi became president of the European Central Bank (ECB). In the financial sector, the FROB (Fund for Orderly Bank Restructuring), the Spanish government, acquired stakes in Unnim, Nova Caixa Galicia, and CAM, which was eventually acquired by Banc Sabadell. Bankia, led by Caja Madrid, went public, and La Caixa created CaixaBank, which also debuted on the stock exchange and absorbed Bankpime. That year, in which the Catalan government, presided over by Artur Mas, continued issuing bonds to individuals, saw the industrial closures of Yamaha and Derbi, as well as the acquisition of Cacaolat by the alliance of Damm and Cobega (today, Idilia Foods shares ownership with Damm).

In 2012, the labor reform was approved, leading to a general strike on March 29th. The restructuring of the financial sector left only two savings banks in all of Spain: Caixa Ontinyent and Caixa Pollença. Finally, the European Union launched a bailout of up to €100 billion for Spain to save the financial system, in exchange for several commitments to adjustments and reforms. Bankia and Catalunya Caixa received the largest amounts of aid. The "bad bank" Sareb, responsible for the banks' toxic real estate assets, was also created. BBVA acquired Unnim. And it was the year the Regional Liquidity Fund (FLA) was created to alleviate the inability of the autonomous communities to access financing markets, among other measures. In Catalonia, the former Aigües Ter Llobregat (ATLL), now ATL, was privatized and returned to public ownership. in a tender awarded to Acciona and the Brazilian company BTG Pactual, which sparked a legal battle led by Agbar. BTG Pactual was also part of the consortium that won the contracts for the Vallvidrera and Cadí tunnels, the same year Spanair ceased operations. And two large entities, Agrupació Mútua and L'Aliança, both taken over by the government, ended up, the former in the hands of the French company ACM and the RACC (now owned by Axa), and the latter in the hands of the Valencian company Divina Pastora.

2013 saw the Cyprus bailout, tax hikes by the PP government, pension reforms, and austerity measures in the Catalan government. Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies began to gain popularity, as did anti-eviction movements like the PAH (Platform of People Affected by Mortgages). In 2014, unemployment remained a pressing issue. The ECB reached its limit in interest rate cuts. La Caixa completed its transformation with a foundation as the owner of the investment company Criteria and, in turn, CaixaBank. BBVA acquired Catalunya Caixa.

Five years after ARA hit the streets, in 2020, Greece suffered a severe crisis, with unemployment continuing to be a major problem in Spain. In Catalonia, the Mexican company Bimbo finalized its acquisition of Panrico, and a Chinese multinational, Bright Food, bought Miquel Alimentació. In the financial sector, Sabadell acquired the British bank TSB. Abertis floated Cellnex's telecommunications antenna business on the stock exchange. The Nutrexpa family group split into two: Idilia Foods and Adam Foods.

The following year, after lowering income tax, the PP government raised other taxes, while the eurozone interest rate stood at 0%. Isidro Fainé became chairman of Gas Natural; and Jordi Gual, of CaixaBank, while José María Álvarez-Pallete rose to chairman of Telefónica. There were also changes at the UGT: Josep María Álvarez replaced Cándido Méndez, and in Catalonia, Camil Ros teamed up with Matías Carnero. Internationally, the Panama Papers scandal broke, implicating officials and figures from several countries in practices designed to reduce their tax burden. It was the year of the birth of the multinational controlled by the Daurella family, Coca-Cola European Partners (CCEP).

A major exodus of corporate headquarters was the defining feature of 2017 in Catalonia due to the October 1st referendum and the independence movement, facilitated by the legal changes introduced by the PP government. In just a few months, more than 2,500 companies relocated their headquarters. The Spanish government intervened in the Generalitat (the Catalan government) through Article 155 of the Constitution. Banco Popular was also taken over and absorbed by Santander. At the CCOO (Workers' Commissions), there were leadership changes, with Unai Sordo replacing Ignacio Fernández Toxo; and in Catalonia, Javier Pacheco replaced Joan Carles Gallego.

In 2018, pressure from pensioners led the PP (People's Party) government to modify the pension reform in order to secure the PNV's (Basque Nationalist Party) support for the budget. Fainé relinquished the presidency of Gas Natural to Francisco Reynés. In Catalonia, Josep Sánchez Llibre became president of Fomento del Trabajo (a Catalan employers' association) and Pau Relat, president of Fira de Barcelona (Barcelona Trade Fair). It was also the year in which the State lifted its intervention in the Generalitat. The two major Catalan cava producers changed hands: Freixenet included the German company Henkel as a co-owner with 50.67% of the capital; and Carlyle acquired a majority stake in Codorniu. The Lao family sold Cirsa to Blackstone, and the Gassó family sold Gaes to the Italian company Amplifon.

In 2019, the travel agency Thomas Cook went bankrupt, and the American company Boeing had to ground all its 737 MAX aircraft after a series of accidents. Abertis sold Hispasat to Red Eléctrica. El Corte Inglés ended its family feuds with the election of Marta Álvarez as president, replacing its president, Dimas Gimeno. And at the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce, the pro-independence candidacy led by Joan Canadell won.

Ten years after the founding of ARA, in 2020, the coronavirus crisis erupted, with a GDP drop similar to that recorded during the Spanish Civil War, which forced a surge in public aid and deficits. We became accustomed to working from home. One of the most striking aspects was the cancellation of the Mobile World Congress (MWC). Despite the complications in the negotiations, Brussels laid the groundwork for the Next Generation EU funds, allocating €140 billion to Spain. It was the year the elimination of highway tolls began, and Nissan announced its withdrawal from its factories in Catalonia. Negotiations between CaixaBank and the Spanish government for Bankia had begun. In 2021, CaixaBank's acquisition of Bankia was completed, and the Australian firm IFM's takeover bid for Naturgy fell through, obtaining less capital than expected. In 2022, Pedro Sánchez's government's labor reform was passed due to a mistake by a PP deputy, and in July, the ECB closed a chapter and began raising interest rates, while Mobile World Congress agreed to remain in Barcelona. In 2023, the mining industry in Súria suffered tragic events with three deaths, the prices of basic goods skyrocketed, with olive oil being the prime example. The financial sector experienced a seismic shift with the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank in the US and, in Europe, Credit Suisse, which ended up in the hands of UBS. A judge seized ownership of the Celsa steel company from the Rubiralta family and transferred it to creditor funds. And Josep Santacreu won the elections in the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce.

In 2024, BBVA shook up the financial sector by launching a takeover bid for Banco Sabadell, which opposed it, and Grífols suffered a heavy price drop on the stock market due to reports from the speculative fund Gotham City, which ended up in court and resulted in the family, the main shareholder, leaving management. The La Caixa Foundation appointed former Agbar president Àngel Simón as CEO of Criteria and became a major shareholder in Telefónica alongside the Spanish government. The Catalan multinational Puig went public and joined the Ibex 35. It was the year of agricultural protests and the implementation of rent caps in Catalonia under the housing law. On the industrial front, the Nissan plant in the French Zone of Barcelona was saved, and the Ebro brand was revived with the Chinese company Chery as shareholders.

This year, 2025, in which Sabadell shareholders, who returned the headquarters to the city where it was founded, ultimately rejected BBVA's takeover bid, there is strong pressure to invest in defense. It is the year of the major blackout and the revolution at La Caixa, which decided to return the headquarters of its foundation and Criteria to Barcelona, with the dismissal of Ángel Simón and the appointment of Francisco Reynés, president of Naturgy, as vice president and José María Méndez as CEO, along with a reformulation of the strategic alignment plan. Internationally, in the year of the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), Donald Trump initiated a trade war with tariffs, which ended in an agreement with the European Union (EU) and tensions with China and other countries. It has also been the year in which President Salvador Illa gave the green light to the expansion of Barcelona airport.

And over these years, some prominent figures in the economic world have died, such as the founder of Celsa, Francisco Rubiralta (2010); of CCOO, Marcelino Camach and Simón Rosado (2010); and of the former president of La Caixa and Agbar, Ricard Fornesa (2014); of Santander, Emilio Botín (2014); of El Corte Inglés, Isidoro Álvarez; the president of Havas Media, patron and promoter of the Barcelona Olympic Games, Leopold Rodés, as well as the president of Planeta, José Manuel Lara Bosch (2015); the former president of Gas Natural (Naturgy), Salvador Gabarró (2017); the former president of the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce, Miquel Valls (2019); Mariano Puig (2021); the former president of the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce, Antoni Negre (2022); and Artur Suqué, of the Perelada group (2021). Xavier Gramona, of the Gramona wineries (2023); the pharmacist and patron Antoni Vila Casas (2023); Isak Andic, founder of Mango (2024); the former president of Telefónica César Alierta (2024), the president of Freixenet, Josep Ferrer (2024), or Joan Uriach (2024), among others.