About us
Background
Santander UK plc, a part of the Santander Group, is a leading financial services provider in the UK, offering a wide range of personal and commercial financial products and services.
Our success is built on a focus on retail and commercial banking. We have consistently delivered strong financial results with increasing profits and revenues that are balanced by strict cost-management and responsible lending. This has enabled us to be the most efficient financial services provider in the UK(1), committed to offering customers the most innovative and best value-for-money products.
Looking ahead, Santander is extremely well-positioned to continue to grow, with expansion focused primarily through organic means, while assessing selected acquisition opportunities as they arise.
In August 2010 we agreed to purchase the parts of the banking businesses of the Royal Bank of Scotland which are carried out through its RBS branches in England and Wales, and by its NatWest branches in Scotland. In addition, we aim to do more business with our 25 million existing customers, rewarding them for their loyalty to Santander.
Size
The combination of Santander UK plc's retail and corporate banking presence is a powerful one: with a distribution capability across 1,400 branches and 25 Corporate Business Centres combined with a broadening commercial product range. We are organised into four main business divisions:
- Retail Banking: offers residential mortgages, savings products, banking services (including current accounts), and other personal financial products to customers throughout the UK.
- Corporate Banking: offers banking services principally to the Small and Medium-sized enterprises (SME) market.
- Global Banking & Markets: provides financial markets sales, trading and risk management services to corporate clients in the UK, as well as originating structured products for retail customers.
- Private Banking: offers private banking services for retail and corporate clients, and specialist banking services (including onshore and offshore savings accounts, execution-only stockbroking and marketing of structured products).
Facts and figures (at Dec 2010)
- Around 25 million customers
- 25 Corporate Business Centres
- Around 1,400 branches
- Over 25,500 staff
The UK business continues to deliver excellent performance with a full-year profit in 2010 of over £1,700m - up over 10% compared to 2009.
In 2009 Santander net UK deposits rose by £14.9bn and in 2010 a further £9.6bn came into the UK bank from retail, corporate and private banking customers.
Santander Group - a successful history
Santander Group is a diversified retail and commercial bank with around 14,700 branches, more than any other international bank, over 190,000 employees and around 100 million customers. Its success comes from being close to its customers, its focus on retail and commercial banking and a sensible approach to lending.
The relationship with our customers is long-standing and built on trust and confidence. In difficult times, knowing the people who you borrow from and lend to is a distinct advantage. Our customers are also spread across the world. Santander operates in ten main markets where its strategy is to have critical mass, enabling it to operate efficiently and offer its customers the best in products and services. As a bank diversified geographically as well as along business lines, Santander is not exposed to a single market or country.
Our strict and prudent risk management, together with our relentless focus on retail and commercial banking, gives the bank a low and predictable risk profile. In 2010, the Group posted profits of more than €8 billion for the fourth consecutive year. This was achieved against the worst economic backdrop for several decades.
More information on Santander Group can be found on the website.
Note 1: Source: Internal analysis of cost:income ratio of main UK peers(2) based on published results for June 2010.
Note 2: Peer group includes Lloyds Banking Group plc, Royal Bank of Scotland plc, Barclays Bank plc and Nationwide Building Society. The results for Barclays Bank plc excludes Standard Life Bank.