Bankers in Lisbon say the demise of BES is a watershed moment for the country: the turning point when old Portugal became new Europe. When BES collapsed earlier this year, markets briefly feared a return of the crisis to Portugal and to Europe. Even after the bank's bailout, investigators in at least six countries still pore over bank documents, transfers and deals, trying to make sense of Salgado’s last days battling to keep his empire afloat. The backstory is of an extraordinary rivalry, spanning the decades before and after Portugal's 1974 revolution, between the country's two pre-eminent business families.
October 13, 2014