Of the 467 kilograms of garbage that each Spaniard generates annually, only 38.6% acquires a second life. The rest, more than 13 and a half million tons of waste per year, goes directly to the incinerator or, mostly, to the landfill.. Spain is at the bottom of the large European countries in terms of recycling of urban solid waste (MSW): 10 points below the average of the twenty-seven and far from the 69% of waste that is reused in Germany, 58% of Netherlands or 52% of Italy.

According to a report published this Wednesday by the Valencian Institute of Economic Research (Ivie) together with the BBVA Foundation, Spain now recycles 7% more than five years ago and 32% more than 20 years ago, but it is still not close to the figures of urban waste recovery in which European countries have been involved for more than a decade. Eurostat data reveal that Spain's MSW recycling rate is even lower than what the EU average recorded 10 years ago, when four out of every 10 waste was already recovered.

Regarding total waste – MSW and waste from industrial and healthcare activities – the recycling rate rises to 48% in Spain, but is still ten percentage points lower than the average recorded in the European Union.

Thus, domestic waste is what hinders recycling the most in Spain. Only 7% of waste generated in homes is recycled, while three out of four end up in landfills and the remaining 18% are burned. Health waste, by its nature, is also at the bottom of recycling – only 13% can be recovered – and, despite being the material that concentrates environmental efforts, only two out of every three plastics acquire a second life.. On the opposite side, waste paper and cardboard, wood and glass have the highest recycling rates, while the textile industry improves in this aspect and three out of every four garments are already recovered.

To the queue in circularity

The implementation of the circular economy in Spain is going backwards. If in 2017 8.8% of products were made with recycled waste, in 2022 this proportion was 7.1%. Once again, Spain is far from the European average circularity rate – which is 11.5% – and from countries such as France and Italy in which almost one in five new products is obtained from recycled waste.

This is, in the opinion of the author of the report, Eva Benages, the main alarm that Spain faces.. “Competition for the extraction of raw materials is increasing, with higher and more volatile prices, and it is not in Spain's interest to continue being so dependent on the outside world,” he explained in statements to this newspaper, arguing that betting on the circular economy could be a good alternative to obtain raw materials without leaving the country. In addition to the environmental benefits, Benages has insisted that circularity represents significant economic savings, as it replaces the purchase of natural resources – increasingly limited – that are needed in production processes.

Money could be behind the failure of the implementation of the circular economy in Spain. Private investment allocated to activities related to waste reuse in the country exceeded 6.1 billion euros in 2021, which is equivalent to 0.5% of GDP, when the European Union average is 0.8%.. However, Spain is on par with its counterparts in terms of patents related to the circular economy, with more than 20 new ideas registered each year..

Furthermore, activities related to recycling generate thousands of jobs in Spain every year.. In 2021, 2.3% of those employed were employed in this sector, a proportion higher than the European average and representing more than 454,000 people, the majority of them working on R&D&I initiatives.. Thus, these activities represented a contribution to the Spanish GDP of 1.9%, almost 23,000 million euros..

Uncomfortable, elevated, difficult to justify and understand, annoyingly recurring…. There are several characteristics that are associated with bank account commissions.. Above all, from the customer's perspective. Instead, they are a powerful source of income for banks.. In fact, that is the reason why it seems difficult for them to disappear.

However, the digitalization of the financial sector has democratized products and their conditions, increasing competition and supply.. So “today there are various and multiple accounts without commissions and with other attractive characteristics, even though these types of charges have not completely disappeared,” they point out from the comparator Helpmycash.

The fact is that faced with an offer of commission-free accounts as wide as the current one, you have to look at another series of aspects when deciding.. Specifically, in four differentiating factors that will be the final weight that tips the scales.

1. Online operations

The online world has not only brought a more global and open market in terms of products and services.. It has also required, for the good of all, an adaptation to the digital environment, both from banks and clients and, as an example, the birth and good positioning worldwide of various entities that stand out for their digital operations.. The app is enough for the client to carry out any management or operation.

In this sense, Revolut stands out and its popular Revolut Account, specially designed for those seeking versatility and efficiency in their transactions.. It offers an online banking experience without borders, since it allows you to withdraw money anywhere in the world without costs and with the best exchange rate for payments in other currencies. In addition, it offers points and discount programs, accounts with returns of up to 3.1% and investment possibilities with bitcoins and stocks as other incentives.

2. Gifts, returns and discounts

Precisely, like Revolut, other entities and banks, in addition to eliminating commissions, seek to attract new customers with another classic formula: gifts and remunerations.. A historically proven commercial hook that today can also be the determining factor.

And if we talk about remunerating the client, the commission-free account that must be mentioned is the Sabadell Online Account.. Just as there are entities that give away products or discounts, this account is a direct way to make savings profitable with an attractive interest of 6% TIN the first three months and 2% TIN (3% APR) afterwards.. But not only does it offer profitability, it also rewards you with a 3% refund on electricity and gas bills, along with free debit and credit cards.

3. The accessibility of the requirements

At the same time, not every client wants access to everything, nor do all banks want any client.. Therefore, a third factor to consider when choosing a commission-free account is the rest of the conditions and the limits it sets.. That is, if it is more or less flexible in the requirements. In any case, in this aspect and again due to the democratization of the market, there are options for everyone, which do not require any type of connection with the entity.

Without going any further, the Welcome EVO Smart Account is an accessible and generous alternative in terms of profitability for a wide range of profiles.. With an attractive 2.85% APR and the possibility of opening a deposit at the same time with identical interest, it has a policy without commissions and without conditions. In other words, it is not necessary to direct the payroll or receipts to hire it.

4. Cards and ATMs available

Finally, although there is talk and more and more value is given to online operations, digital payments, etc., for many it continues to be vital to have a wide ATM network, as well as cards with a reduced cost. Banks also know this and that is why the options for this type of profile are still very present today.

A good example of this is the Santander Online Account, which stands out in terms of comfort and accessibility.. In addition to having no commissions, it gives away up to 400 gross euros for direct debiting the payroll or pension. But, above all, it is ideal for those who use the card regularly, since it offers the debit card completely free. And, obviously, being one of the largest banks on the planet, the availability of 30,000 free ATMs around the world makes it a perfect alternative for those who prioritize this fourth factor.

Discounts at the gym, access to an online mental health program and benefits in case of paternity leave with daycare in the office are some of the benefits that Glovo promises for its new boss in Spain, according to an unconventional offer on LinkedIn for a position of such high hierarchy.

“All positions are published on our website and on LinkedIn. In addition to considering internal candidates and recommendations from the company's own employees, we want anyone who wants to join the project to have the possibility of participating in the process for any position,” says a Glovo spokesperson.

The company has already received 70 applications for the position which has a generous social benefits package, which also includes a lot of shares, private health insurance, two days a week of teleworking and three weeks from anywhere in the world and a monthly credit allocation in Glovo to place your orders.

The offer, however, does not include the salary that the person in charge of this position in the home delivery company will receive, an amount that varies greatly depending on the profile in this type of positions.

The chosen one will replace Xavier Virgili Grau at the head of Glovo's daily operations in Spain, who will join another of the Barcelona-based unicorns, Factorial, as vice president at the end of the month.

The manager who joins the company must have ten or more years of experience in “agile” business environments such as startups, investment banking, technology and consulting firms.. This will have more than 200 employees under his command and will directly supervise areas ranging from day-to-day operations to the development of new business opportunities, the consolidation of the quick commerce area and the creation of a long-term strategy for the company.

Likewise, he will also be the main interlocutor of the company with its clients and the regulator and the Government in a scenario marked by the conflict opened by its distributors and the labor nature or not of them with the Ministry of Labor and its rivals, who accuse to the company from unfair competition.

Delicate situation

The company's commitment to continue keeping its riders as self-employed after the publication of the homonymous law has resulted in numerous million-dollar fines, although the majority are already prior to the legislation being approved as the majority of courts consider that the relationship of Glovo with its delivery drivers is of a work nature.

With expected losses of 209 million euros in 2023, the group managed to have the execution of several million-dollar fines suspended due to its delicate economic situation.. More recently, another front has been opened, such as the possible use by illegal immigrants of delivery driver accounts.

Tax fraud in the sale of hydrocarbons has skyrocketed in Spain in recent months. In part, because fraudsters are taking advantage to squeeze their operations before a new control mechanism that the Government approved at the end of 2023 comes into force on March 28, which involves limiting the intermediaries who can participate in the fuel marketing. During this kind of moratorium, the markets have detected a significant increase in fuel offers, mainly diesel, at abnormally low prices.. The rebound has been so striking that it has already caught the attention of the Civil Guard.

For some time now, the Armed Institute has been following the trail of the convoluted corporate architecture that would be serving as a parapet for a large plot of tax fraud in the country.. The intricate nature of these networks of instrumental companies and front men complicates the investigations of an investigation that could last more than a year.. For now, sources from the Civil Guard and the Tax Agency agree in conversation with EL MUNDO that one of the companies on the radar of the ongoing investigation is Biomar Oil.

It is a company under the umbrella of the TCM Investors holding company dedicated to the purchase and sale of wholesale fuel at an international level.. “In very few years we have managed to position ourselves in the markets, rigorously complying with all the requirements established in the national and international standards in the sector,” says the holding company's website about Biomar, which places the company as one of the top ten. Spanish market operators.

One of the reasons why Biomar Oil is in the crosshairs of the financial authorities is its meteoric increase in income. Between 2021 and 2022, its turnover went from 25 million euros to more than 1,000 million, as El Confidencial reported.. Sources from the trading field point out that, given the volume of refined fuel that the company has acquired in the last year in the markets, everything indicates that it would have doubled its sales again in 2023.. This would mean an increase in its turnover of almost 8,000% in just two years.

Biomar, which according to the commercial registry has a total of 16 employees (data from 2022), justified in its latest report the improvement in its figures in a change of ownership of the company, which made it go from being “a company that sells at a local level, supplying mainly the Group's Service Station network, to become one of the operators with the highest sales volume in the country”. This medium has tried to contact Biomar, without success.

The corporate structure of the group is not simple. TCM Investors defines itself as the head of the holding company that includes Biomar Oil SL. and three other companies in the hydrocarbon field, but there is no corporate relationship between all of them, nor information about their shareholders.. Yes they have the same administrators. TCM and Biomar also shared their headquarters in the Cuzco building, at 141 Paseo de la Castellana in Madrid, but a month ago the latter moved its registered office to Barcelona.

In 2023, Biomar's parent company bought two companies that manage the fuel storage terminals at the ports of Malaga and Cartagena.. Both, like their previous owner, Buran Energy, were on the Treasury's list of defaulters, with a debt of 17 million euros.. Buran requested its dissolution after transferring its subsidiaries.

According to official Treasury data, the tax fraud hole in the sale of hydrocarbons was 700 million euros in 2022. To this we must add the evasion of compensation that operators who do not include in their product the volume of biofuel set in Europe, which represents a loss of another 95 million to public coffers, has to pay.

Sources close to the Tax Agency (AEAT) assure that fraud has reached “disproportionate dimensions” in a few years and explain that these cases are “closely linked to organized VAT fraud schemes, from the so-called trout (fictitious) companies”, to missing traders and shell companies”.

Fraudulent operators generally pretend to sell hydrocarbons to companies created ad hoc, without VAT charges.. They then resell the product to final distributors (gas stations) at a very low price, even at a loss, something they can afford because they have not borne the VAT on the purchase, nor do they pay the VAT that affects the sale, because they disappear from the map without carrying out the settlement. According to the figures used in the sector, about 1,000 gas stations, of the 12,000 in Spain, would be selling below the cost price..

“We are being very harsh for two reasons. Fraud in numbers represents 6% of all tax revenue from hydrocarbons. In addition, these frauds represent a violation of the free competition that prevails in the EU internal market, as they are harmonized taxes at the community level, trying to expel small operators from the market, which results in harm to the free setting of prices,” explains another source from the Tax Administration.