Management changes

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA 10 January 2003 'BBVA, S.A.', pursuant to the provisions of section 82 of the Securities Market Act, hereby announces the following SIGNIFICANT EVENT 10th January 2003 BBVA makes management changes in ongoing shake-up Restructuring is intended to help bank tackle new challenges Yesterday the BBVA Board of Directors gave the go-ahead to the extensive Group management reorganization proposed by the Executive Chairman, Francisco Gonzalez. The new Executive Committee, which has been slimmed down from 14 to 12 members, will develop the new banking model to meet the new challenges and opportunities facing the sector, moving closer to what society is demanding from the financial industry. The management board will now be cut from 14 to 12, a move that will make it more flexible. We need a more agile structure, more compact and integrated, in which each business unit has greater autonomy and decision capability. The new structure is going to allow us to accelerate the implantation of our business model, the chairman said. The BBVA management reorganization is designed to afford the Group a lighter, more flexible structure, giving the business areas more scope of action and focusing more heavily on society's and the business' present and future needs. The changes form part of a process that began at the AGM last March, at which a new business approach was outlined. Now we are going to take a big step forward by reorganizing our management structure to tailor it to that new business approach, said Francisco Gonzalez. We need a lighter, more compact and integrated structure, in which each business unit has more scope of action and decision-making power. All in order to ensure that BBVA is better placed to meet the new society's changing needs. The new structure will enable us to implement our business model faster. Jose Ignacio Goirigolzarri emphasized that the approved changes will put BBVA in a firmer, more stable position. This team is going to spearhead BBVA transformation over the next three years, he said. The new business area structure is part of our strategy of taking a new approach to customers. There will now only be three business areas, which will report to the Chief Executive Officer: Retail Banking, where Julio Lopez remains General Manager, will be taking over the Spanish Asset Management, Investment Services and Insurance activities; Wholesale and Investment Banking, with Jose Maria Abril at the helm, will also include the Real Estate and Private Equity areas; and the America area, with Vitalino Nafria as the new General Manager, will account for all the banking, pensions and insurance activities in the region, including BBVA Bancomer. The reshuffle has also had a bearing on some of the business support areas. The new Human Resources and General Services, with Angel Cano at the helm, will also be responsible for General Services, Procurement and Security. Ignacio Sanchez-Asiain will be taking over Operating Resources, mainly the Organization and Systems Areas; Manuel Gonzalez Cid is the new Chief Financial Officer, and will also be responsible for Corporate Expansion and quoted industrial companies (telecommunications and energy). Manuel Mendez remains in charge of the Risk Department, which the same scope of responsibilities. Nor have there been any changes in the areas reporting to the Executive Chairman: Eduardo Arbizu remains General Manager of Legal Affairs, and has taken over responsibility for the Fiscal Area; Jose Maldonado remains the General Secretary; and Javier Ayuso is General Manager for Corporate Communications. Jose Sevilla will be coming in as the Head of the Chairman's Office, which is responsible for Controlling activities, Internal Audit, Regulatory and Compliance department, Economic Research and the Chairman's Technical Committee. The chairman of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, Francisco Gonzalez, made yet more management changes with the early retirement of four directors from the bank. The board shake-up is part of the bank's aim to tackle the new challenges and opportunities in the sector. Jose Antonio Fernandez Rivero (operating resources), Gregorio Villalabeita (industrial group), Jose Fonollosa (Latin America), and Antonio Ortega (human resources) are those taking early retirement and leaving the Executive Committee as part of the changes. All of them will be BBVA representatives on Boards of Directors of invested companies. 10th January 2003 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
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