Luis Valls-Taberner Arnó, born in Barcelona into a family of family of the Catalan bourgeoisie, in 1926, he was the fifth of six brothers and was six years older than the youngest, Javier, who would be co-president of Popular with him for years.
Luis Valls' parents were deep believers, and he studied at the Jesuits, Marists and La Salle Brothers, and then Law at the University of Barcelona. He earned his doctorate and taught at the universities of Barcelona and Madrid. In his early twenties, the young Valls discovered his vocation to Opus Dei, and asked for admission as a numerary.
"This way of taking his faith to the ultimate consequences of a vital commitment made him an absolutely atypical banker in his time. Austere, supportive, freedom-loving and with a humanist spirit", Francisco Aparicio describes him. Valls helped the Communist Party and Comisiones Obreras, as well as religious institutions -especially many convents of nuns-: it was something constant in his social action. It became famous the recurrent question that he always asked them "What do you need?
To learn more about Luis Valls, Omnes spoke with Francisco Aparicio (Cartagena, Murcia, 1955), a lawyer who knew and treated Luis Valls for more than 25 years, and was his executor. They worked together on many projects, and he has succeeded him in the foundations for example, Fundación Hispánica, and in the management and vision of its social action.
Modern social responsibility, and the concept of CSR, emerged in the United States in 1953. It would take decades to reach the codes of good governance in Spain. But there were pioneers, for example Banco Popular, founded in 1926...
- Luis Valls, president of Banco Popular for several decades, was no ordinary banker. Despite leading one of the most profitable financial institutions in the world, Valls did not behave like a typical businessman. Affectionately nicknamed "the banker with sandals" by Enrique Castro, also known as the 'red priest', Valls combined his financial vision with a deep social vocation. This nickname was no accident; his commitment to helping others was something that defined him.
At 1957, at the age of 31, Luis Valls was appointed executive vice-president, and began to Banco Popular's social action, what did it consist of?
- Luis Valls promoted the creation of several foundations with a clear objective: to help those who truly needed it, always separating the actions of the bank from those of the foundations. They were two independent worlds.
He put this vision into practice when, shortly after taking the helm of the bank, he proposed that the "statutory fees", i.e. the annual fees they were entitled to receive for being directors, should be donated to social causes.
The sum of these annual donations was the great source of the foundations, the vehicle through which the social action was carried out. In addition, and throughout more than 50 years of this social action, many friends, acquaintances and good-hearted people donated large amounts of money as one-time, non-recurring donations. These two sources of income nourished the foundations inspired by Luis Valls to help thousands of people and institutions.
He always understood that Banco Popular's purpose went far beyond just being an example of seriousness, profitability and business soundness, Valls wanted to go further with a vision of social banking, a new dimension.
Luis Valls reportedly had one of the lowest salaries of the presidents of Spanish financial institutions, and he also donated a large part of it to foundations, to expand opportunities for people. Is this the case or is it a well-intentioned hoax?
- Many are surprised that Luis Valls, president of one of the most important banks in the country, was not motivated by personal gain. He was a person totally detached from material things and there are many traits and behaviors that prove it. He was the bank president who received the lowest salary in Spain, although there is no doubt that his salary was very high. In 2004, almost at the end of his mandate, his colleagues multiplied his salary by 3 or 4 compared to the Catalan banker (750,000 euros per year compared to more than 3 million euros for the leaders of the banking sector at that time).
If that were not enough, almost all his money Valls was donating during his career to help individuals and institutions. It is well known his austerity in his dress, always elegant and correct, but, it is said, he was only known for 6 suits. Many more examples are recounted in Testimonials at his web page.
Were the accounts of the foundations transparent? They did not advertise their work?
- Transparency, as in the bank, was non-negotiable in the foundations. All accounts were always supervised by the corresponding public body and, obviously, by the governing bodies of each foundation. Everything is conveniently reflected in the books and, in summary form, is accessible on the foundations' websites.
You report that he personally took care of the requests that came into his office. Was he generous or stingy? Tell us your philosophy: What is it to help without appearing?
- The foundations were governed by some basic principles that are described in detail in the "Criteria for Action", a document that set out their identity and the way to proceed in their management. Some of them are striking, such as the fact that they never wanted to be the only ones to support the initiative; they asked you to look for other travel companions to share the risk. At the same time, I was able to verify that the idea was solid.
Other examples are the insistence on "saying no early if it was not clear to you so as not to make people wait" and not publicizing the approval of a loan to avoid the "call effect". Thousands of people testify to their appreciation for the work of foundations in their lives, families and institutions.
The work of the foundations was not only to provide financial resources, but also advice on the implementation of projects, contacts or suppliers and other needs beyond the monetary ones. In the foundations, they accompanied people in meeting their challenges and took a long-term interest in the progress and achievement of objectives.
Valls was extremely careful with the management of resources. For him, every donation or loan had to be a carefully considered and absolutely viable decision.
Can you tell us about the credits or honor loans that you launched?
- Just as in other cases, foundations specialize in topics such as art, road safety, immigration or other laudable initiatives, in the case of the foundations inspired by Valls, the focus was on the individual and his or her specific needs. It did not matter the area of activity or the personal task that each person carried out, only his or her need was relevant and to know if and how he or she could be helped.
There are thousands of actions that foundations have carried out and continue to carry out in these almost 50 years. Some in Spain, but many others outside our borders. One of the principles of the foundations stands out, especially with students. It was common to find cases in which part of the debt was forgiven in exchange for extraordinary grades. It is a gesture that shows how the essence of the foundations and their founding spirit was to help the progress of people, of society, always giving the best that we all have inside.
To make Luis Valls' open-mindedness explicit, it is reported that Banco Popular was one of the first to support Santiago Carrillo's Communist Party and Comisiones Obreras. It also helped more than a few convents of nuns.
- He was open-minded, conciliatory and, according to many "a liberal"This made him a friend in all areas of the political spectrum. Moreover, being his political convictions close to the Christian democracy, he made good friends in the PSOE and in Workers' Commissionsfor example. As a banker, he took this independence to its ultimate consequences, his being the first bank (for a time, the only one) to grant credit to the Communist Party before the 1978 elections.
In his twenties, Valls discovered his vocation to Opus Dei and asked for admission as a numerary. Did his vocation and spirituality influence his professional life as a banker, humanist and philanthropist?
- At the age of 21 he applied for admission to Opus Dei, a Catholic organization of which he was a member until his death. This way of taking his faith to the ultimate consequences of a vital commitment made him an absolutely atypical banker in his time. Austere, supportive, freedom-loving and with a humanist spirit, Luis Valls was a very relevant character of his time and one of the so-called "free men" of his time. Big Seven of the bank.
Your commitment to religious bodies Valls' social action -special attention was paid to many convents of nuns- was a constant feature of his social action. Valls visited and took an interest in congregations with extreme needs, which he helped, advised and accompanied. Not only with money via loans through the foundations, but also by offering them suppliers who could help them and, always, being very close to them by visiting them or taking an interest in their needs by telephone.
Many other congregations benefited from the sensitivity of Luis Valls and his team of collaborators. The recurring question he always asked them, "What do you need?" became famous.
One point that caused controversy after the death of Luis Valls was the relationship of people in the Bank with the co-president for some years, Javier Valls, Luis' brother.
- Family was an axis in Valls' life. Although his origins and a large part of them resided in Barcelona, he never lost the link with his mother and siblings. His father died when Luis was very young. The family bond also took shape in the bank, where up to three brothers, Pedro, Felix and Javier, worked with him.
The succession at the bank, when Luis was already ill and elderly, was unanimously endorsed by the Board of Directors. Ángel Ron, who worked with Valls for more than 20 years, was the person chosen. A competent and recognized person in the sector and, for those who wanted to look for other relationships, not linked to Opus Dei, he led the institution almost until 2017, when the bank passed into the hands of Banco Santander.
Some people wondered why his brother Javier, Vice-Chairman for so many years, was not his successor. It is not easy to know the reasons, but what does seem clear is that the Board of Directors unanimously accepted his resignation and appointed Ángel Ron as Chairman: unanimity in a Board of Directors implies a prior consensus accepted by all. On the other hand, a different proposal from the then recently deceased Chairman of the Board was not even discussed, and this was not a matter that would have been left to chance.
My personal impression is that some people do not understand the freedom of the people of Opus Dei in the questions of professional, social, political, economic, etc. But the interviewee is you.
- Indeed, there are some people, a few, who still do not understand freedom, and there are some people, a few also, who do not understand that there are people who can give their life or their time to God and to others, and, with certain frequency, they look behind every behavior for profit, self-affirmation or power. They are not the majority, far from it.
For those who have this way of thinking, it may be difficult to imagine that the faithful of Opus Dei are as free as any other Catholic in professional, social, political or economic matters, and that they do not act in groups. Specifically, in the history of Banco Popular, there have been several situations in which two Opus Dei members have coincided on the Board of Directors or among the directors, with projects that are not only different but even antagonistic: this is normal, since each has his own opinions and his own ways of dealing with the problems of the company.
Tell me, in conclusion, any quality or virtue of Luis Valls. And some defect, because we all have defects.
- Valls, like all people, had faults and virtues. Some say that he was somewhat dry in his manner, since grandiloquence was not his best attribute and, at times, according to some collaborators, "he was not easy to understand". He was somewhat reserved and, at times, enigmatic. It was not easy to know what he was thinking and some claim that he had an intimidating gaze with long silences.
We are in front of a multifaceted person who was much more than a great banker, a humanist and a philanthropist. An unrepeatable figure, good, hardworking and generous. He was a prudent character and many emphasize that he liked to influence much more than to command.
Luis Valls created a different way of banking and helping society. Thousands of employees, shareholders, the media and tens of thousands of beneficiaries through his foundations are witnesses to this, and will continue to be so in the years to come thanks to the daily work of the management team of Patronato Universitario, Fundación Hispánica and Fomento de Fundaciones.
