The Minister of Finance, Arcadi España, has come out this Tuesday in defense of the president of the Spanish Society of Industrial Holdings (SEPI), Belén Gualda, underlining her "absolute professionalism" after she has been indicted in the 'Leire Díez case', which investigates alleged irregularities in the awarding of public contracts linked to the collection of irregular commissions.
"I consider her a great professional, competent, a magnificent public servant, who has done and continues to do and will do a magnificent job since she has been presiding over SEPI," stated the head of Finance during his speech this Tuesday in the Senate.
In recent days, it has become known that the National Court judge Santiago Pedraz has summoned Gualda, along with 24 other people, to testify as an investigated person in one of the parts of the 'Leire Díez case' focused on alleged anomalies in the awarding of public contracts for the payment of irregular commissions.
However, the Minister of Finance has emphasized that, "in the face of noise and fury," the data from recent years demonstrate Gualda's "absolute professionalism" at the helm of SEPI.
España alluded to the extraordinary fund created to sustain the solvency of certain companies affected by the crisis derived from Covid-19. Within that framework, 30 operations were closed for a total amount of 2.6 billion euros, of which 1.754 billion have already been recovered, as they were loans, including 340 million in interest.
"I believe it is a mechanism that proved effective and all the necessary procedures were followed within that framework," the minister stressed.
Likewise, España highlighted that SEPI's annual accounts for 2025 show profits of 130 million euros and a historic turnover of 7.384 billion, to which investments of 529 million are added, 63% more than in 2024.
"It's okay to, once in a while, talk about things going well. It's okay. I know some people worry about that, but it's okay to love ourselves a little as a country. We haven't done everything wrong. On the contrary, I believe we have done almost everything very well," he concluded.