The Spanish government has named one of the country’s largest defense companies’ Indra Sistemas SA main investors, Angel Escribano, as its new executive chairman, Bloomberg reports.
This move replaces a figure with close ties to the ruling Socialist party and signals a renewed push to bolster the nation’s defense industry.
Escribano, who chairs Escribano Mechanical & Engineering SL and holds approximately 14% of Indra’s shares, was appointed following an extraordinary board meeting on Sunday, according to a regulatory filing by Indra. The Spanish government, through its state holding, owns a 28% stake in the company.
This decision comes amidst a series of strategic moves in the business sector by Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, including reorganizations at several key companies.
The appointment sees Escribano take over from Marc Murtra, who has close ties to the Catalan branch of Sanchez’s Socialist party. Murtra is departing to assume the role of executive chairman at Telefonica SA.
The shakeup at Telefonica itself was prompted by the Spanish government and Criteria Caixa SA, the phone carrier’s two primary shareholders, who advocated for a change to replace Jose Maria Alvarez-Pallete.
Madrid has designated Indra as a cornerstone of its ambitious plan to strengthen the country’s defense capabilities, which have seen increased attention and funding following the conflict in Ukraine.
Last year, Indra announced a new strategic direction focusing on higher-margin defense business and indicated it would seek a new investor for its Minsait IT unit.
Activist investor Amber Capital has previously called for Indra to break up as a way to maximize shareholder value. The move to bring in a major investor as chairman could signal a shift in how the company approaches these kinds of proposals in the future.
