The Spanish banking industry is not looking much more stable than at once a couple of years ago, at least as far as Bankia is concerned.
The nationalized Spanish bank has just announced it will be closing 1,100 branches in 2013 and laying off around 4,500 employees. This after it had initially announced the Bankia bank closures and layoffs would be spread out over at least three years.
Of course, as usual, it’s all done to benefit the bank although Bankia is insisting it’s to make them more “efficient” in customer service as well as to preserve their profits.
What it all boils down to, though, when you read between the lines is Bankia’s “profitability” and that’s what they’ll look after — regardless that customers will be inconvenienced as Bankia branches near them close down and regardless that at least 10 percent of Bankia’s workforce will lose their jobs.
Don’t forget too, Bankia was nationalized with tax payer money less than a year ago.
Now Bankia is also going to be receiving 18 billion euros of the approximately 40 billion the Europe Union agreed to lend Spain to recapitalize banks. Nice to see them using that money to preserve jobs isn’t it? Jobs for some of those tax payers whose money went to help bail them out in the first place. Not.
All I can say is it looks like it’s about time to do more banking with Santander as everything about Bankia is bad news.