Leading companies pull out of Catalunya

Banco Sabadell is among those anxious to ensure continuation of EU regulation

The message of the business community appears to be one of little confidence in an independent Catalunya

Tuesday marked the worst day on the IBEX Spanish stock market since the results of last year’s Brexit referendum became known, but while leading stocks belonging to companies based in Catalunya fared worst, some of the listed companies began to implement strategies to halt the value of their shares.

The first to take steps was Oryzon, in the bio-technology sector, who announced that they will be moving their headquarters from Cornellà de Llobregat in the province of Barcelona to Madrid. This is a clear reaction to the events surrounding the Catalan independence referendum over the last few days, and a message to the regional government that the company is not prepared to remain based in such an unstable environment and endanger its cordial relations with investors.

The laboratories and 40 jobs which are currently in Cornellà will remain there, but the company will no longer be registered and have its official headquarters in Catalunya.

Clearly the announcement was to the liking of investors, and at one point Oryzon shares had risen in value by a third, although eventually they ended Wednesday’s trading with an increase of 12.85 per cent.

But this is not an isolated incident, and on Thursday afternoon one of Spain’s leading banks, Banco Sabadell, called an extraordinary emergency board meeting to decide whether the company will move its headquarters to Madrid, Asturias or Alicante, implying that the decision to leave Catalunya has already been made. Immediately bank shares rose in value by 3 per cent, increasing pressure on the other major Catalan bank, CaixaBank, to consider a similar move.

At 30th June this year the assets of Banco Sabadell amounted to 271.5 billion euros, making it the fourth largest company in the finance sector in Spain. The bank has 2,548 branches all over the country, employs over 26,000 people and serves 11.8 million customers.

It is reported to be in order to protect the interests of these customers that the Sabadell is moving away from Barcelona, after managing director Josep Oliu stated on Tuesday that the “worrying” political situation in Catalunya and Spain makes it necessary to avoid any risk of the bank falling outside the jurisdiction of the ECB and the European Banking Authority.

Thursday also saw telecommunications company Eurona announce that it is moving its registered address from Barcelona to Rivas-Vaciamadrid, citing as its motive the need to ensure that relationships with investors are as positive as possible.

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