During a hearing at the Budget, Finance and Public Administration Committee, Mário Centeno, addressed the activities of the central bank and the acquisition contract for the new central building of the Bank of Portugal with insurer Fidelidade, stating that “the new building is a reality under construction and [visible] to everyone.”
He subsequently criticized the dissemination of confidential information.
“The bank temporarily failed when we allowed confidential and sensitive information to be publicly disclosed, when Board of Directors’ meetings were broadcast in a truncated manner and [when] data subject to confidentiality were exposed publicly. This is unacceptable,” he remarked in his opening statement.
Although he did not specifically mention the contract with insurer Fidelidade in this statement, it was made within that context.
On July 21, it was reported that the value of the future facilities will exceed the 192 million euros of the agreed transaction, as this amount refers only to structural works (not including finishes, paintings, final flooring, interior finishes, among others), with estimates suggesting the total cost could rise to 235 million euros.
It was also reported that consultants from the Bank of Portugal raised alerts, particularly regarding licensing and the potential need for environmental impact assessment for the construction of the parking lot.
In an interview on July 25, Mário Centeno stated that the Ministry of Finance received “all information” concerning the purchase of the new facilities because the central bank sent the Government “the entire list of issues raised at the building in February this year, along with the evaluations at a later date when they were completed and with the purchase and sale promise contract.” He described the range of doubts publicly raised as “very frivolous.”
In today’s initial intervention, Centeno did not mention this matter but acknowledged it was a leadership failure to share information with third parties, indirectly referring to this project.
“The bank’s high ethical standards are a constitutive part of its existence and secular responsibility. It is the bank’s obligation to defend them while respecting the constitutional guarantees of its employees and all who depend on the bank for their daily lives, who are all the Portuguese and all those looking to Portugal to live, visit or trade,” he stated.
During the hearing, Centeno was questioned by PSD deputy Alberto Fonseca regarding the reappointment of economist Álvaro Novo as his chief of staff shortly before a decision would be made on whether the current governor would be reappointed or if the Government would appoint a new governor.
Mário Centeno cited the rules of service commissions, stating he did not leave “any chief of staff” for his successor.
He also expressed that it was an “honor” to have been governor and claimed greater stability in the banking system today.
“The banking system successfully completed a reversal of the economic-financial cycle initiated almost ten years ago,” he noted, highlighting the sale of Eurobic to Abanca in 2024 and “the recent acquisition proposal for Novo Banco” by the French group BPCE.
