La Voz de Galicia – May 2, 2025 →
I’m quite ignorant when it comes to economics, and no matter how much I read, I must admit that I just can’t grasp many things—like, for example, why Spanish banks are making even bigger profits than they did last year. I reread the news this week about their earnings, and I think about how many times I get angry every time I set foot in a bank, or how many times my sisters and I argue about the outrageous fees they charge our mother just for having her modest pension in a Galician bank (the one next to her house, the one she’s been going to her whole life).
And even though I understand that’s not the main reason why bank profits are growing the way they are, it’s still frustrating to accept that those who handle other people’s money have more money than ever, while those who entrust their money to them have less and less purchasing power—and on top of that, they’re charged extra for it.
And once again, I get angry (how can the conditions required to avoid such fees be so exploitative?), but then I remember that I need to “choose my battles,” as the Americans say, and that getting angry about something I can’t control only leads to wasted time and a headache. Still, it’s hard not to feel guilty about letting it go, especially when I remember the historic bailout of Spanish banks in 2012, and at the same time remember that 40% of pensioners can’t make it to the end of the month—and no one is going to bail them out.
