José Ignacio Goirigolzarri and Gonzalo Gortázar convey to staff a message of unity, confidence and responsibility ahead of the triple challenge of 2021: public health, economic recovery and merger integration

• On the first day of operations following the completion of the legal merger between CaixaBank and Bankia, both the chairman and CEO of the bank met remotely with close to 8,000 directors and last Friday they addressed staff in a corporate video.
• CaixaBank's executive chairman, José Ignacio Goirigolzarri, stresses that “we must work as a single team to achieve the ambitious goal of leading the transformation of our sector, and do so in close collaboration with our customers and society”.
• CEO Gonzalo Gortázar emphasises that “the entire organisation must be focused on customer service so that this this new, stronger-than-ever CaixaBank, will allow us to achieve new successes from a position of leadership in the Spanish banking sector”.
• A total of 12,918 Bankia professionals have today received a welcome kit that includes a video of welcome messages featuring employees from both workforces as well as an employee card.

On the first day of operations following the completion of the legal merger between CaixaBank and Bankia on Friday 26 March, CaixaBank chairman José Ignacio Goirigolzarri and CEO Gonzalo Gortázar met remotely with close to 8,000 of the bank's directors, and last Friday they addressed the staff in a corporate video.

Both executives conveyed to professionals at the entity a message of unity, confidence and responsibility in light of the challenge ahead with the integration, to be carried out alongside the management of the public health and economic crises throughout the 2021 financial year.

“Leading the transformation of the financial sector”

José Ignacio Goirigolzarri expressed his “joy and pride to be forming the country's leading financial group”, although, at the same time, he pointed out that “we must also be aware of our enormous responsibility and the complex environment we face”.

In his first message to the entire staff, Goirigolzarri said that “we must face this new phase with an attitude open to change and transformation. And this attitude is only made possible by remaining intellectually humble and by being determined in our actions and in the implementation, which is what transforms reality and creates value”.

In addition, CaixaBank's executive chairman, pending tomorrow’s ratification by the Board of Directors, also wanted to highlight the importance of the team. “A merger between two large institutions requires a great deal of collaboration, team loyalty and plenty of generosity,” he adds.

In this regard, Goirigolzarri, stressed that “we must work as a single team to achieve the ambitious goal of leading the transformation of our sector, and do so in close collaboration with our customers and society”.

“The whole organisation must be focused on customer service”

For his part, CEO Gonzalo Gortázar celebrated “the culmination of more than six months of preparatory work to make this project a reality” and “warmly welcomed everyone from Bankia to CaixaBank”.

In his speech, Gortázar focused on customers: “The whole organisation must be focused on customer service. Their satisfaction has been, and will continue to be, the key to our success, and we need to help them overcome the enormous challenges they are facing”.

In addition to customers, the CEO repeated that “the key to success lies in us, in the team. We have already become a single team. We make no distinction of being from one bank or the other. Together we have an impressive team, and we will always play as a team, rowing in the same direction. This is how we will reap success after success.”

He closed on an optimistic note: “We must have the utmost confidence in ourselves, in this new, stronger-than-ever, CaixaBank which will allow us to achieve new successes from a position of leadership in the Spanish banking market. This is a tremendous opportunity and we must seize it”.

Welcome kit for 15.918 Bankia professionals

On the other hand, a total of 15,918 Bankia professionals have received a welcome pack today, which includes a video in which several employees share welcome messages, as well as the employee card.