Ana Botín will celebrate a decade at the head of Banco Santander as its executive president this Tuesday, after having held various positions of responsibility in the previous 25 years and succeeding her father, Emilio Botín, after his unexpected death. The executive highlighted during an interview published by the entity this Saturday that the first “great international leap” of the bank was made by her grandfather, who was president between 1950 and 1986. “At that time, in the fifties and sixties, there was great expansion, but that expansion was also consolidated, which was not only national, but also international,” Botín explained. “During my father’s time there was more expansion, even faster. We became the first bank in the eurozone, the first bank in Spain, we made many acquisitions,” she recalled. In 2014, Banco Santander recorded profits of 5.816 billion euros, while the forecast for this year is to exceed 12 billion euros. In addition, the bank has gone from having around 60 million clients to more than 168 million. The performance of the share in this decade has registered a decline of around 10%, taking into account the distribution of dividends that the bank has been making. During these first 10 years of Ana Botín at the head of the bank, there was also a period of eight years in which the interest rates of the European Central Bank were in negative territory, affecting the banking business. Before assuming any position in Banco Santander, the president of the entity worked for JP Morgan in New York for eight years (1980-1988). Later, in 1989 she would join the board. In 1992 she became general director and for the following six years she led the expansion in Latin America. After the acquisition of Banesto, Botín became executive president of said entity. Ana Botín continued to gain experience at the bank, serving as CEO of Santander UK from 2010 to 2014, after which she took over as chairman of the bank. Botín sits on the board of directors of The Coca-Cola Company and is chair of the Institute of International Finance (IIF). SHE HAS IMPROVED THE ENTITY’S METRICS Botín’s decade at Santander can also be seen in the bank’s credit quality metrics. In 2014, the bank closed the year with a return on equity (RoE) of 7%, compared to the current 12.6%. The CET1 capital ratio was also 9.7%, compared to 12.5%. Furthermore, despite the increase in the number of shares in circulation, affected among other things by the acquisition of Banco Popular after its liquidation, the bank now has 286,000 more shareholders (up to 3.5 million), as well as some 24,000 more employees, for a total of almost 210,000 people. The number of branches has been reduced by just over a third, to 8,285 branches. “What I am most proud of is having achieved the numbers. But I always say it in the right way,” Botín said during the interview published by the bank. “When they ask me what is the most difficult thing about my job, in the end it is finding a balance between delivering today – doing numbers, growing profits, growing customers – but also ensuring that we do it in a sustainable way,” she added. BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT EVOLUTION In her first stage as president, she decides to appoint José Antonio Álvarez as CEO and create the board of Santander Spain. The managers in all the important markets are also changed and new presidents are appointed in the group’s subsidiaries. After the first two years of his mandate, Botín promoted the strategic plan that Santander developed between 2016 and 2018, with the aim of accumulating capital until reaching 11% of CET1. Regarding the business, the bank has set itself the objective of being among the top three positions in customer satisfaction in all markets. During this period, the bank also has to manage the crisis derived from the decision of the United Kingdom to leave the European Union (Brexit). It also deepens its digitalisation process with the relaunch of Openbank. Likewise, during 2017, Banco Popular was rescued through its acquisition by Banco Santander after the European authorities determined that it was unviable and that it had to be resolved. As part of the operation, Santander had to carry out a capital increase of 7,000 million that would cover the capital and provisions required to strengthen Banco Popular’s balance sheet. Previously, Santander had bought Banif in Portugal (2015) and the Citi subsidiary in Argentina (2016). Subsequently, Botín’s mandate was also marked by the Covid-19 pandemic. During the crisis, the bank helped 250,000 clients in Spain through ICO lines, with financing worth 32.8 billion euros. During this period, in addition, the European Central Bank (ECB) prohibited European banks from distributing dividends in view of the financial risks of the pandemic. OPERATIONAL TRANSFORMATION The operational transformation of the group was completed last September, when the bank announced that it would begin to structure its business around five global businesses: Retail Banking, Digital Consumer Bank, Payments, Corporate and Investment Banking and Wealth Management and Insurance. Looking ahead, Botín will face the launch of Openbank in the United States and Mexico as president. “The digital bank will allow us to have a much faster growth in the American market. And this is something that really sets us apart and that we have already shown that we are profitable,” Botín explained in the interview published on Saturday. At the end of 2013, Spain only contributed 7% of the group’s profits, compared to 23% for Brazil and 17% for the United Kingdom. Brexit and the reduction of interest rates in the Eurozone turned Latin American countries into the main driving force of the group, while now, with a change in the monetary policy cycle, the Old Continent is once again the great generator of income and profits for Santander.
