Santander designates its new American CEO
Santander Embraces Digital Transformation with Global Restructuring and Leadership Changes
Santander, the Spanish banking giant, has announced a significant global restructuring aimed at enhancing digital transformation and cost-efficiency in the face of fintech disruption. The restructuring includes the consolidation of its retail and commercial business, creating a global digital consumer banking division, and the elimination of the bank's three regional divisions in Europe, North America, and South America.
The restructuring was kick-started in September 2023, with Christiana Riley appointed as the regional head of North America. Riley, who spent 17 years with Deutsche Bank, including as CEO of the Americas, was recently named as the next chief executive of Santander's U.S. bank, succeeding Tim Wennes.
Wennes, who transformed Santander US and laid the foundations for continued growth, received praise from Ana Botin, Santander's executive chairman, for his contributions. However, no new information was provided about Wennes's plans following his departure.
Meanwhile, Swati Bhatia, who led Marcus and GreenSky for Goldman Sachs, joined Santander in March 2024 to lead its U.S. digital transformation. Bhatia's focus has been on developing a customer-obsessed mindset, commitment to innovation, and global connectivity to reach the deposit milestone at record pace.
The bank's digital bank, Openbank, launched in the U.S. in October, with the aim of becoming a national, digital bank with branches. Openbank has already reached $2 billion in U.S. deposits, according to a Monday announcement.
The bank will move forward with its five global units: retail, consumer, corporate and investment banking, wealth, and PagoNxt payments business. The focus of Openbank is to efficiently boost national deposit acquisition to fund its auto franchise and transform its Retail Bank.
The restructuring and leadership changes come amidst a wave of job cuts in the UK, with over 2,000 jobs cut in the first half of 2025. This move is part of a broader workforce transformation tied to digital initiatives and branch consolidations, positioning the bank to compete better in a fintech-driven environment.
The ongoing restructuring also includes the planned acquisition of TSB in the UK, which is expected to accelerate Santander’s investment in innovative products and digital offerings, further supporting the bank’s digital growth strategy.
In conclusion, Santander's global restructuring, marked by workforce reductions in Europe and leadership changes in the U.S., is poised to drive its digital banking expansion and fintech innovation. The bank is balancing cost efficiency with strategic technology investments to remain competitive against fintech disruptors and meet evolving customer expectations.
[1] Santander UK Cuts Over 2,000 Jobs in First Half of 2025 (Reuters, 2025) [2] Santander Names Christiana Riley as U.S. CEO (Bloomberg, 2025) [3] Santander to Acquire TSB in the UK (Financial Times, 2025) [4] Openbank Launches in the U.S. (Santander Press Release, 2024)
- Santander's digital transformation in the business sphere is evident in the creation of a global digital consumer banking division, which is part of the group's strategy to leverage technology to compete effectively in the field of finance.
- The acquisition of TSB in the UK is expected to bolster Santander's technology investments, aligning with the bank's focus on fintech-driven innovation and digital growth across its operations.
