José María Loizaga Viguri
José María Loizaga Viguri | |
|---|---|
| Born | May 9, 1936 Spain |
| Died | March 22, 2020 (aged 83) Ciudad Real, Spain |
| Occupation(s) | Entrepreneur, business executive |
| Years active | 1960s–2020 |
| Known for | Leadership positions at ACS Group, Zardoya Otis; founder of Mercapital Servicios Financieros |
José María Loizaga Viguri (9 May 1936 – 22 March 2020) was a prominent Spanish entrepreneur, recognized for his leadership positions as director and Vice President at ACS Group and as Vice President of Zardoya Otis.
Biography
Loizaga embarked on his professional journey after earning a degree in Economics, initially taking on various executive roles at Banco Vizcaya. In 1968, he assumed the role of CEO at Zardoya, which subsequently merged with Schneider Otis in 1972. Following this, he directed operations for Otis Elevator across Southern Europe from 1972 to 1980 and later held the position of Vice President at Zardoya Otis.
During the 1980s, he established Banco Hispano Industrial, a member of the BHA Group. In 1982, Loizaga was appointed Vice President and CEO of Banco Unión, which shortly thereafter merged with Banco Urquijo. He continued as Vice President of Banco Urquijo until 1985. That same year, he founded Mercapital Servicios Financieros, where he served as chairman until 2008. Known as Spain’s first venture capital firm, Mercapital merged with N + 1 (currently Alantra), maintaining its investment activities through the REA Industrial Portfolio. From 1989 until his passing, Loizaga was a member of the ACS Group board.
In addition to these roles, Loizaga chaired Bodegas Lan and Bodegas Barón de Ley. His board memberships extended to institutions such as Banque Privée Edmond de Rothschild, Suez International, Otis International, AmorimInvestment, Lácteas García Baquero, Unión Fenosa, and Mecalux. He also held the presidency of the Hotel Portfolio. His broad range of executive and investment responsibilities established him as a significant figure in Spanish business circles from the 1970s through 2020.
Personal life and death
Loizaga was married to María Paz Jiménez Martínez, and together they had three children: Javier, Paz, and Rebeca Loizaga Jiménez. He passed away in Ciudad Real on 22 March 2020 due to complications from COVID-19 amid the pandemic affecting Spain.