Spain's Supreme Court orders BBVA and its former chairman to stand trial for corporate espionage
Spain's high court has ordered the bank BBVA and its former chairman Francisco González to stand trial for alleged offences of bribery and disclosure of business secrets in the framework of an investigation into corporate espionage.
Spain's Supreme Court orders BBVA and its former chairman to stand trial for corporate espionage
Spain's Supreme Court has issued an order for the country's second-largest bank, BBVA, and its former chairman Francisco González to be brought to trial. The decision comes in the context of an investigation into corporate espionage that has shaken Spain's business sector since 2019.
According to Reuters, the court accuses the banking entity and its former top executive of alleged offences of bribery and disclosure of business secrets. The case forms part of a broader investigation into several companies that hired the services of a private detective agency run by former police commissioner José Manuel Villarejo to carry out various allegedly illegal operations between 2004 and 2016.
The Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office has requested a fine of €181.8 million for the bank for its involvement in the espionage case. With regard to González, prosecutors are seeking a prison sentence of up to 173 years, although under the Spanish Criminal Code, the maximum time he could serve is limited to 15 years.
González held the presidency of BBVA when the entity hired the detective agency. He stepped down from his position as honorary chairman in March 2019 to avoid damage to the bank's reputation. He has denied any wrongdoing.
BBVA previously confirmed that it had hired the services of the agency, but stated it had found no evidence of espionage. In its 2025 annual report, the bank maintained that the actions under investigation do not entail criminal liability for the entity.
The banking entity declined to comment on the recent court decision. None of the current members of the board of directors are involved in the investigation.
This is the first case in which senior corporate executives will have to stand in the dock. Previously, executives from Iberdrola, Repsol and CaixaBank were also investigated, but their cases were dismissed. Last year, Villarejo was acquitted for work carried out for Repsol and CaixaBank aimed at obtaining information about the former president of Sacyr Vallehermoso, Luis del Rivero, between 2011 and 2012.
Source: Google News IE — Crime (en)