The downfall of Manuel Fernández de Sousa, who built Pescanova SA from a provincial Spanish fishing company into a multinational giant, is a cautionary tale of the still-rippling European banking crisis.
His troubles began at a 27 February board meeting where Pescanova’s two newest directors grilled him about the company’s proposed financial results.
Two days earlier, Mr. Fernández had convened the new directors and other big shareholders to warn the company faced a EUR 50 million (USD 65.6 million) cash crunch. Why, the new directors demanded at the board meeting, was Pescanova preparing to release 2012 results that showed a big profit and lots of cash? “The numbers didn't make sense at all,” said one of the two, François Tesch, whose firm held almost a 6 percent Pescanova stake. The two directors refused to sign off on the numbers, and Fernández didn't release them.
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