TelefĂłnica Group replaces CEO
After nearly nine years as CEO, Ălvarez-Pallete leaves, reportedly due to Spanish government pressure. His successor is recruited from IT company Indra.
Marc Murtra is the new CEO of the TelefĂłnica Group.
(Image: TelefĂłnica)
Surprising change at the top of the Spanish TelefĂłnica Group. In a special meeting convened at short notice on Saturday, the Board of Directors dismissed the previous Executive Director and Chairman of the Board of Directors JosĂ© MarĂa Ălvarez-Pallete. The Board appointed 52-year-old Marc Thomas Murtra Millar as his successor.
The decision was made "in view of TelefĂłnica's new shareholder structure and the desire of some important shareholders for a fresh start at the top of the board", the company announced on Saturday evening. Ălvarez-Pallete had complied with the request and submitted his resignation. The Board of Directors thanked the outgoing CEO for "the many years of collaboration" and his "exceptional performance and dedication".
"It was a privilege"
"It was a privilege to be part of the big Telefonica family. It was my home and my school," explained Ălvarez-Pallete on the X platform (formerly Twitter). "Together we have made the impossible possible. Thank you for every step we took together and thank you for believing in me. Once a TelefĂłnico, always a TelefĂłnico."
The 62-year-old Ălvarez-Pallete had been CEO of the former Spanish monopoly since April 2016. When he took office, TelefĂłnica was burdened by a mountain of debt of around 52 billion euros, which Ălvarez-Pallete was able to reduce by around half. He also concentrated the international telco giant's business on a few core markets, including Germany. At the end of 2023, the Group bought all shares in TelefĂłnica Deutschland and delisted the German subsidiary from the stock exchange.
However, Ălvarez-Pallete was unable to achieve a turnaround in the TelefĂłnica share price. Since 2016, the share price has more than halved and has fluctuated between three and five euros for a few years. Like other network operators in Europe, TelefĂłnica is faced with intense competition and a high need for investment in infrastructure .
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Government intervenes
The new boss was apparently installed at the instigation of the Spanish government. The sovereign wealth fund SEPI acquired a ten percent stake in TelefĂłnica last year in order to secure Spanish influence over the company. Saudi Telecom had previously acquired just under ten percent of TelefĂłnica shares. Unlike in Germany, where the state still holds just under 14 percent of Deutsche Telekom, TelefĂłnica was fully privatized between 1995 and 1997.
Marc Murtra was born in England but has Spanish citizenship and studied at the Polytechnic University of Catalonia in Barcelona. He was most recently CEO of the Spanish IT company Indra Sistemas, which develops systems for aviation, defense and e-government, among others. During his career, he has also worked in the public sector and as a political official.
(vbr)
