Dia: Jonathan Muir (LetterOne) replaces Babcock as chairman

TVS News AI, editorially supervised, presents Dia: Jonathan Muir (LetterOne) replaces Babcock as chairman.

The Spanish supermarket chain Dia has a new chairman of the board: Jonathan Muir, CEO of the investment company LetterOne, is taking over the chairmanship. The board approved the personnel move on Friday and notified the Spanish securities regulator CNMV, according to a statement from the group.

Why Babcock had to go

His predecessor Benjamin J. Babcock had resigned the chairmanship and his board mandate because he no longer belongs to LetterOne. The seat at the top thus lost its basis for him — the board chair at Dia was directly tied to the role at the majority owner. The board explicitly thanked Babcock for his work and emphasized that his engagement both at the head of the body and as a regular director was recognized.

Babcock's tenure at Dia ran, according to the ABC report, from September 2023 to June 2025. This period included, according to the report, the strategic realignment of the company, the operational recovery, and a refinancing completed in December 2024. He then took the chair again in February 2026, before now — a few months later — stepping down once more.

How Muir lands the post

Muir joins the board via the co-optation procedure — as a non-executive member filling the gap created by Babcock's departure. That means: the board itself appoints him, but his appointment must still be confirmed and re-elected at the first ordinary shareholders' meeting. As a non-executive chairman, Muir presides over the body without himself taking on the running of the chain.

The company explicitly justifies the change on continuity grounds: Muir is to continue the chairmanship and oversight of the chain's strategic objectives. His appointment also signals the continued commitment of owner LetterOne to Dia.

How the board is now stacked

After the changes, the composition remains, according to the company, on a best-practice track: eight of the nine members — 89 percent — are fully independent of L1R Invest1 Holdings, the reference shareholder, which holds 77.7 percent of the capital. All members of the audit and compliance committee as well as the nomination and remuneration committee are independent directors. In addition, the majority of board members sit in Spain, and the proportion of women on the board stands at 67 percent.

What it means for you

The change is primarily a decision inside the shareholder circle: as long as majority owner LetterOne calls the shots, board posts will stay tightly tied to the holding line. For everyday life in Dia stores, nothing changes — the chairman does not run the chain, and operational responsibility stays with management.