There was an absence from the table as I lunched with Javier Valls, chairman of Banco Popular Espańol, one of the best banks in the world. His brother, Luis Valls, is a member of the Opus Dei religious order and eschews a public profile.
“Luis Valls does the strategy. [He is all about] frugality and austerity. The best banker the country has had,” says the president of a top Spanish bank.
