Feb 08, 2026
3 min read
The conflict with General Dynamics, the fall of Indra in the stock market and the controversial merger project have put the government's "white knight" in a tight spot.
More than a year ago, Angel Escribano went to Moncloa at the request of Manuel de la Rocha, the President of the Head of the Public Economy.De la Rocha announced to the Government (yes, the Government) that he had decided to remove Álvarez-Pallete from the position of president of Telefónica;He requested confidentiality because the case was not made and revealed that the one chosen to occupy this position is Marc Murtra, the president of Indra, in which the company he and his brother Javier are the most private shareholders.Pedro Sánchez The economic guru talked to him about the necessary options to get the seat of Murtra, but the Secretary knew that he dreamed of the opportunity to become the visible head of the "national security guard" he wanted to build a Government in Indra.Do not look again, the Secretary came to tell him every time, because he is the best representative for me.
Ángel and Javier Escribano are the owners of EM & M, a company of principles founded by their father as a workshop in the Corridor of Henares that has grown to become a supplier for major defense companies.Ángel saw a few years ago - the Russian invasion of Ukraine was a blow - that the defense industry in Europe, which has been in place for decades, will be reactivated against the geopolitical situation marked by the destruction of the status quo, which was later confirmed by the victory of Donald Trump and his desire to increase the defense budget of his country.Escribano has not heard who decided to invest - in debt - in Indra before the company delisted the future public bonds.
Escribano (Ángel) no sólo tenía a su favor el instinto y el conocimiento del sector, sino el aprecio de la ministra de Defensa, Margarita Robles, que veía en él al caballero blanco dispuesto a liderar ese "campeón nacional", al margen de las multinacionales, especialmente General Dynamics. Aunque no fue Robles la primera en echar un cable a los hermanos Escribano. En 2016, gobernando todavía Mariano Rajoy, el ex presidente Rodríguez Zapatero y el ex ministro de Defensa, José Bono, pusieron en marcha sus influencias para facilitarle a EM&M un contrato de cámaras de visión nocturna con la Venezuela de Hugo Chávez. Después, durante la pandemia, Moncloa recurrió a Escribano como proveedor de respiradores (que EM&M fabricó con la tecnología de Hersill). Más tarde, Javier hizo buenas migas con De la Rocha. Había, por tanto, un largo camino recorrido de buena sintonía hasta llegar a ese momento crucial en el que Moncloa iba a convertir en realidad el sueño de Ángel con su poderosa varita mágica. El 19 de enero de 2025, Ángel Escribano fue nombrado presidente ejecutivo de Indra.
Angel and his brother own 50% of Advanced Engineering and Manufacturing, which controls 100% of EM&M, which in turn owns 14.3% of Indra.Only SEPI (linked to treasury) exceeds the Escribano brothers, who own 28% of the capital.So, for the event to be successful, nihil obstat of Maria Jesus Montero was required, as you can imagine As you did, there was no objection.
Before Moretra ascended to the skies of Telefonica (an operation carried out in Monclava with de la Rocha, the same speaker at the Monclava palace), it was left as a possible combination with Andra's EM&M, which perfectly suited Escribano.
According to the latest valuations, EM & M can be worth around 1.5 billion, which would mean fifteen times the value of the company with five years ago for the brothers.In theory, the merger may be sense because Indra decided to prioritize the defense business.But other companies in the sector have asked this because, in fact, Indra and EM & M are already partners, which manufactures the 8x8 Drimse, where Poppy Barbage, which manufacturers also participate? "Industry Tharmsus ask.
In Moncloa, he believes that Escribano wants to control Indra, as well as he wants good harmony with the PP.
But this was not the only drawback of the merger.The fact that the receiving party and the receiving party were from the same family meant a conflict of interest.But in these months between the notaries and the government, it seemed like a small thing.This is what big law firms can design a suit for King Kong and fit well.So Indra Garrigues was hired.There were even proper precautions, such as the Escribano brothers leaving the room when the board discussed the company's merger with EM&M.
Everything seemed to be going well.The government, reluctantly at first, agreed in June 2025 to increase defense spending to 2% of GDP, which represented an unprecedented injection of money into the industry through special modernization programs: almost 15 billion euros.
Great agreements were reached... and, with them, problems began.Exceeding his earnings expectations for the future, Escribano opted for Santa Bárbara (a subsidiary of the North American giant General Dynamics).He said he wanted to buy it because he had not invested in Spain for a long time, which provoked the anger of his rivals and the visit to Moncova of the vice president of the multinational, Danny Depp, who complained to Pedro Sánchez. He spoke of the arrogance of the government's supporters, who refused to lift their feet.Barbara.However, this did not prevent the defense from awarding INDRA programs (self-propelled howitzers) for an amount of 7.2 billion.Santa Barbara again complained about not being invited to the party.Develop new self-propelled artillery programs without even requiring a construction process.
In its January 28 order, the Supreme Court warned that the outcome of the appeal would affect not only the appellant but all companies in the sector who may have been discriminated against.That is, 14,000 million debts will be a question, which will paralyze defense programs, risking not only the companies involved, but also Spain's commitment to NATO.
General Dynamics (Santa Barbara) happens to be advised by Ivan Redondo, who is Pedro Sanchez's chief of staff until July 2021.Although for a long time his message fell on deaf ears, due to the bad relationship with Felix Bolaños, they started to listen to him.Especially because of the ability he still has to get the media to destroy his competitor.The relationship between the Escribano brothers and Antonio Bueno (European Director of General Dynamics) is worse than bad.
In addition to all this, Moncloa has begun to realize that the Escribanos are not part of the group of rulers who live in the heat of power.They are people who are fighting for every euro they get, and they don't mind using their political power, but that doesn't make them supporters.Ángel Escribano knows that one day things will change and another President will sit in Moncloa - although this possibility is seen by some as remote -.Logically, Escribano approached the PP to make it clear to Nuñez Feijóo that he was "political", that he had nothing to do with Sánchez or PSOE.He even boasted that he had voted for PP.
On January 28, Escribano appeared to fire Indra's head of communications Carmen Perez, replacing her with Rafael Moreno, a professional from Santa Barbara.
In this strange situation, last Tuesday, February 3, Ángel Escribano went to Moncloa, again at the request of Manuel de la Rocha.It was leaked that Moncloa wanted the head, but that has not happened.What the Government wanted was to block the merger of Indra and EM&M, which, if carried out, would make the Escribano brothers the majority shareholder of Indra, even over SEPI.The percentage we must add to Amber Capital (7.3%), which has Joseph Oughourlian, president of Grupo Prisa and allies of Escribano.What Moncloa wants to do is to exchange the merger for the purchase of 51% of EM&M, with which SEPI will retain control of Indra, even if this means paying the brothers an amount of almost 800 million euros.
The leak of the meeting in Moncloa and the possibility of Escriba's resignation as Indra's executive chairman rattled the market.The stock market tumbled 15% in 48 hours, until Escribano himself announced that no one had asked him to resign and that he intended to continue leading the company.Even with corrections on Thursday and Friday, Indra has lost 10% in capitalization this week.
Swords were raised.Escribano is not a man to give up easily, he will endure whatever it takes and pursue his idea of achieving integration.A person close to him tells him: "If conscience does not work, he will leave, and then there will be a problem of insomnia."
On the other hand, the judicial process remains open and there is no sign of peace in the relationship between Indra and General Dynamics in the short term.The field is in a state of suspense and Defense is very concerned about the future of its weapons program.
What remains after these twelve months of dizziness is the lack of professionalism of Moncloa's economic leadership, which cannot predict what will happen to him.government favoritismIt places emphasis on always putting your foot down to find the best option.Even on serious issues such as defense and the ability of businessmen to maneuver both in and out of power.Escribano plays with fire and can get burned.
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2 hours ago
Mr. Casimiro says this:
"What remains after these twelve months of dizziness is the lack of professionalism of the economic manager of Moncloa"
Is Mr. Body, who does not appear in the entire article, responsible?
Or is Rocha financially responsible?
And the truth is clear.Everything is "put" party people in companies.
At that time it was in savings banks
These days they are in the industry
It's nonsense to defend...
Place them where the pasta is.
Finally, being smart doesn't mean being smart, so being smart doesn't necessarily mean being smart.
