Mario Fernández, former vice president and former president of Kutxabank, dies

Mario Fernandezformer vice president and former president of Kutxabank, died this Tuesday at the age of 81 after a prolonged illness.

Through social networks, the Government delegate in the Basque Country, Marisol Garmendi, has conveyed her condolences for the death of “one of the most relevant politicians in the consolidation of the Basque Government, who contributed with intelligence and management capacity to the deployment of the Statute of Gernika and Basque self-government.

Mario Fernandez was vice-lehendakari in the Government of Carlos Garaikoetxea from 1982 to 1985. In April 1984 he was elected parliamentarian for the PNV and continued in the Basque Executive until he left office in January 1985.

In 2009 he was appointed president of BBK, replacing Xabier de Irala and, after the merger of the three Basque savings banks and the creation of Kutxabank in 2012was elected executive president of this entity until he resigned in 2014.

After his departure from Kutxabank in 2014 was investigated by the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office for a crime of misappropriation in relation to irregularities committed during his administration to financially benefit former Government delegate Mikel Cabieces. Both were sentenced in 2017 to half a year in prison.