Santander has financed the hotel and restaurant sector with more than 1,000 million euros in the first five months of this year. The agility of the bank when it comes to solving the financing proposals of hoteliers and restaurateurs has been decisive so that many entrepreneurs have been able to continue with their activity, in a sector that has been greatly affected by the crisis derived from the pandemic.
Of the 130,000 clients that the bank has in this sector, 68% of the restaurateurs are self-employed and 60% of the hoteliers are made up of micro-SMEs. Around 60% of this clientele is digitized and represents a business volume of 12,500 million euros. In 2019, Santander created a specific service unit for the hotel sector, focused on meeting their specific needs and supporting these entrepreneurs and freelancers at a particularly difficult time for them.
The products most demanded by hotel and restaurant clients have been, on the one hand, those related to financing, with products such as the Multiproduct Business Policy, Leasing or the Short-Term Credit Line and, on the other hand, POS terminals.
In this sense, it is worth highlighting the virtual POS, which now includes Bizum, as well as Paygold, with which it is possible to make reservations or charge remotely via SMS, WhatsApp or mail, without the need for a website or physical POS.
ONE COMPANIES
Recently, the bank has launched Santander One Empresas and has made One Digital available to its customers, the new specialized internet platform with the possibility of making Internet transfers throughout the European Union and other countries that accept euros (SEPA), access to Bizum services, operate in currency and other services to digitize the self-employed, micro-businesses and SMEs. They can also access an exclusive proposal for Santander customers through One Telefónica to create their online store and thus be able to boost their business.
In the same way, Santander ZOne is a platform that helps companies and businesses to connect with a market of more than five million potential consumers and that offers discounts, experiences and exclusive advantages to customers through the App and online banking.
With a 25% market share in SMEs, Santander is the leading bank in this segment, which reflects the bank’s mission to contribute to the progress of people and companies.
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