Marc Thomas Murtra Millar (1972. Blackburn, United Kingdom) is the new president of Telefónica, replacing Jose María Álvarez-Pallete. This industrial engineer from the Polytechnic of Barcelona has become the Government’s man in the Ibex 35. Until now he had been president of Indra, the technology and defense company, which he also joined through the State Participation Society. Industriales (SEPI), which has now called on him again to lead the change in the presidency of the telecom company.
With a career outside the usual circuits of the directors of the large Spanish selective companies, Marc Murtra landed at Indra when the company was an object of desire. Pedro Sánchez had announced that he was going to increase the Defense budget to 2% of GDP by 2030, at a time of geopolitical upheaval against the backdrop of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. His appointment was as non-executive president in 2021. The first steps in the defense company led to an open war on the board of directors after his intention to dismiss a group of directors who had been appointed by previous presidents of the company. The dissensions in the council became politicized and were used by the Popular Party to attack Pedro Sánchez’s Executive, although all governments, including those of the PP, have been the ones that have appointed Indra’s main executives.
Murtra is known for his conciliatory and dialoguing character, always looking for negotiated solutions, linked to the PSC, people who know him assure that he has no political prejudices when it comes to managing the company. With the support of Indra’s main shareholders – the Amber fund, led by Joseph Oughourlian, president of Prisa; the Basque defense company SAPA; and the SEPI – has achieved in recent years a renewal of the board of directors, becoming executive president of the company and signing José Vicente de los Mozos, former vice president of the Renault Group, a well-regarded manager in the PP’s orbit, as CEO. which has facilitated internal peace.
On the results side, Indra closed fiscal year 2023 with record profits, with profits of 206 million euros, 20% more than the previous year. If the share of the defense company was around seven euros in the month of May when he was proposed to preside over Indra, Murtra will leave the presidency of the defense multinational with the share at 18.06 euros at which it was listed last Friday, almost triple the value. Within the new strategic plan, Indra plans to invoice 6,000 million euros in 2026 and reach a business volume of 10,000 million euros in 2030.
Regarding the debt, although it has achieved the strategic shift of directing and focusing the company on the defense business, in these four years it has not managed to sell the company’s technological arm, Mindsait, even though it was one of the objectives, nor close the acquisition of Hispasat, now under the umbrella of the also controlled by the Government, Redeia.
Murtra is also a member of the board of directors of Ebro Foods, where SEPI controls 10% of the shares, and has been a trustee of the La Caixa Foundation since 2021. Market sources assure that his connection with La Caixa is essential to understand his appointment in Telephone. The Foundation controls the investment holding company Criteria Caixa, which has increased its shareholding in the telecommunications operator’s capital to around 10%. The La Caixa Foundation is chaired by Isidre Fainé, who is vice president of Telefónica, with whom Mutra has an excellent relationship.
Before joining Indra, Murtra had a heterogeneous career. He was chief of staff of socialist Joan Clos during his time as Minister of Industry. Previously, he was general director of Red.es, a public digital development company, also during the Government of José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero. Between 2011 and 2019 he was a founding partner of CREA Inversión, a company specialized in advising on business sales processes. He has also worked at the companies British Nuclear Fuels, Diamond Cluster and the defunct Auna Telecomunicaciones, where he was responsible for corporate development.
With the support of Sepi, Criteria Caixa and the approval of the Saudi STC (which has 10% of the operator), Murtra will not have so many internal problems managing Telefónica, although the Popular Party has already protested against his appointment. The general secretary of the PP, Cuca Gamarra, pointed out that with the appointment of Murtra “it is not enough for the Government to colonize public institutions, now it also wants to colonize private companies. Nothing is outside the interest of the socialist party to spread Sanchismo, even if it is at the cost of the prestige of one of the companies that is Marca España abroad and also an international leader in its sector.” When Telefónica was privatized by the PP Government, President José Maria Aznar appointed César Alierta as president of the operator.
With this change in the presidency of Telefónica, the Government sends a clear message at a time of relevant challenges in the field of telecommunications, technology and the media. Murtra will be the main voice in a strategic company for Spain, with a presence in more than 40 countries, more than 100,000 employees and which in 2023 had a turnover of more than 40,000 million and obtained a profit of 2,369 million.
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