Santander UK
Encyclopedia
Santander UK plc is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Spanish
Santander Group. Based in the United Kingdom
, it operates under the name of Santander. Santander is the third largest bank in the UK in terms of deposits, the second largest in terms of mortgages held, and the fourth largest in terms of branches operated. As of January 2010, Santander has 25 million customers in the UK.
In October 2011, Moody's Analytics
downgraded the credit rating of 12 UK financial firms including Santander UK blaming financial weakness.
Santander is frequently ranked the worst bank in the UK for customer service.
acquired Abbey National for £9bn. As a result of the 2008 banking crisis, Abbey purchased the savings business and branches of Bradford & Bingley
in September 2008 following the nationalisation of B&B by HM Government. The purchase of Alliance & Leicester
by Santander had been agreed earlier that month.
Santander UK plc was formed by the renaming of Abbey National
plc which also included the branch network and savings business of Bradford & Bingley
plc on 11 January 2010. Alliance & Leicester
plc merged into the bank on 28 May 2010, and was rebranded by the end of 2010.
The bank retained the London headquarters of Abbey National and renamed other regional buildings under its own name.
The Abbey name was retained for Abbey International
and Abbey for Intermediaries, a division of the bank offering Abbey branded mortgages provided by Santander UK plc.
On 11 January 2010, Formula One
driver Lewis Hamilton
—Santander's advertising spokesperson—opened the first rebranded Santander branch in central London. Another 300 former Abbey and Bradford & Bingley branches in London and the South-East of England were rebranded that same day, with the rest following by the end of January, by which time there were 1,045 Santander branches. Once the remaining branches were rebranded by the end of 2010, the bank had a total of 1,300 branches.
Due to the three-way merger, Santander has the unusual position of having more than one branch in many British high streets. In Northumerland Street, Newcastle upon Tyne
,for example, there are three branches, which were formerly Abbey, Alliance & Leicester and Bradford & Bingley respectively. Plymouth
city centre has four branches within 300 metres, two of which are adjacent to each other.
Santander launched the UK
's first current account without fees (including unauthorised overdrafts) for its current and future mortgage customers.
As well, all Santander customers are levied no fees when using Santander's automated teller machine
s in Spain, thus "avoiding the usual fees for taking out cash or for doing so in a foreign currency".
The bank merged the charitable sections of Abbey, Bradford & Bingley and Alliance & Leicester together as the Santander Foundation.
branded English branches of the Royal Bank of Scotland Group, as well as the National Westminster Bank
branches in Scotland after much speculation. This move could also lead to Santander UK taking a minority 25% listing on the London Stock Exchange
, returning Abbey, Bradford & Bingley and Alliance & Leicester back to the FTSE 100 as part of the UK business.
It was also reported that Santander was considering bidding for the Allied Irish Bank (GB)
business of Allied Irish Banks
.
, Alliance & Leicester
and Bradford & Bingley
—had roots dating back to 1849 as mutual building societies.
The National Freehold Land Society was established by two Liberal Members of Parliament, Sir Joshua Walmsley and Richard Cobden
, in 1849. The Abbey Road & St. John's Wood Permanent Benefit Building Society was founded in 1874, based in a Baptist
church on Abbey Road
in Kilburn. The Abbey National Building Society was formed following the merger in 1944 of what had become Abbey Road Building Society (already the second largest) and National Building Society (at the time the sixth largest). It was the first to demutualise in 1989.
Bradford & Bingley Building Society was formed in 1964 as a result of the merger of the Bradford Equitable Building Society and the Bingley Permanent Building Society, both of which had been established in 1851. It was the last to demutualise, against the board's recommendation, in 2000. Alliance & Leicester Building Society had its roots in the formation of the Leicester Permanent Benefit Society in 1852 which had changed its name to the Leicester Permanent Building Society by the time it started trading in 1853. The Leicester Building Society (which it had become in 1974 on its merger with the Leicester Temperance Building Society) merged with the Alliance (originally Brighton and Sussex) Building Society in 1985 and subsequently demutualised in 1997.
, (Cantabria
, Spain
) has been the largest bank in Europe in terms of market capitalisation, with a value of €83bn. In early 2011, however, it had been overtaken again by HSBC. It is the third largest bank in the world in terms of profits. Worldwide, Santander consists of 90 million customers, employs over 180,000 people, and operates more than 13,650 branches—more than any other international bank. At the close of 2008, Santander had EUR 1,168 billion in managed funds and €8,876 million in net attributable profit (an increase of 9% from 2007).
Currently, Santander is a corporate sponsor of the McLaren
-Mercedes Formula 1 team and the Copa Libertadores de America.
On 1 December 2008, Santander announced that their Formula One sponsorship deal with McLaren will end in 2010, when Santander will become Ferrari's main sponsor. However, in September 2009, Santander announced that it will continue its sponsorship with Vodafone McLaren-Mercedes due to its brand awareness in the UK rising from 20 to 82 percent.
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
Santander Group. Based in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, it operates under the name of Santander. Santander is the third largest bank in the UK in terms of deposits, the second largest in terms of mortgages held, and the fourth largest in terms of branches operated. As of January 2010, Santander has 25 million customers in the UK.
In October 2011, Moody's Analytics
Moody's Analytics
Moody’s Analytics provides capital markets and risk management professionals with credit analysis, economic research, financial risk management software, and advisory services...
downgraded the credit rating of 12 UK financial firms including Santander UK blaming financial weakness.
Santander is frequently ranked the worst bank in the UK for customer service.
History
In 2004, the Spanish SantanderGrupo Santander
The Santander Group is a banking group centered on Banco Santander, S.A., the largest bank in the Eurozone and one of the largest banks in the world in terms of market capitalisation. According to Forbes Magazine Global 2000, it is the 13th largest public company in the world...
acquired Abbey National for £9bn. As a result of the 2008 banking crisis, Abbey purchased the savings business and branches of Bradford & Bingley
Bradford & Bingley
Bradford & Bingley plc is a British bank with headquarters in the West Yorkshire town of Bingley. In 2008, partly due to the credit crunch, the bank was nationalised and in effect split into two parts; the mortgage book remained with the now publicly owned Bradford & Bingley plc, and the deposits...
in September 2008 following the nationalisation of B&B by HM Government. The purchase of Alliance & Leicester
Alliance & Leicester
Alliance & Leicester was a former UK-based bank and PLC, which in later years operated as a trading name of Santander UK before being rebranded as Santander. Alliance & Leicester was legally acquired in May 2010 by Santander UK, and was fully incorporated by 2011...
by Santander had been agreed earlier that month.
Santander UK plc was formed by the renaming of Abbey National
Abbey National
Abbey National plc was a UK-based bank and former building society, which latterly traded under the Abbey brand name. It became a wholly owned subsidiary of Grupo Santander of Spain in 2004, and was rebranded as Santander in January 2010, forming Santander UK along with the savings business of the...
plc which also included the branch network and savings business of Bradford & Bingley
Bradford & Bingley
Bradford & Bingley plc is a British bank with headquarters in the West Yorkshire town of Bingley. In 2008, partly due to the credit crunch, the bank was nationalised and in effect split into two parts; the mortgage book remained with the now publicly owned Bradford & Bingley plc, and the deposits...
plc on 11 January 2010. Alliance & Leicester
Alliance & Leicester
Alliance & Leicester was a former UK-based bank and PLC, which in later years operated as a trading name of Santander UK before being rebranded as Santander. Alliance & Leicester was legally acquired in May 2010 by Santander UK, and was fully incorporated by 2011...
plc merged into the bank on 28 May 2010, and was rebranded by the end of 2010.
The bank retained the London headquarters of Abbey National and renamed other regional buildings under its own name.
The Abbey name was retained for Abbey International
Abbey International
Santander Private Banking is the offshore banking division of Grupo Santander in the Channel Island of Jersey.In 2011 the business was renamed from Abbey International....
and Abbey for Intermediaries, a division of the bank offering Abbey branded mortgages provided by Santander UK plc.
On 11 January 2010, Formula One
Formula One
Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...
driver Lewis Hamilton
Lewis Hamilton
Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton, MBE is a British Formula One racing driver from England, currently racing for the McLaren team. He was the Formula One World Champion.Hamilton was born in Stevenage, Hertfordshire...
—Santander's advertising spokesperson—opened the first rebranded Santander branch in central London. Another 300 former Abbey and Bradford & Bingley branches in London and the South-East of England were rebranded that same day, with the rest following by the end of January, by which time there were 1,045 Santander branches. Once the remaining branches were rebranded by the end of 2010, the bank had a total of 1,300 branches.
Due to the three-way merger, Santander has the unusual position of having more than one branch in many British high streets. In Northumerland Street, Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
,for example, there are three branches, which were formerly Abbey, Alliance & Leicester and Bradford & Bingley respectively. Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
city centre has four branches within 300 metres, two of which are adjacent to each other.
Santander launched the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
's first current account without fees (including unauthorised overdrafts) for its current and future mortgage customers.
As well, all Santander customers are levied no fees when using Santander's automated teller machine
Automated teller machine
An automated teller machine or automatic teller machine, also known as a Cashpoint , cash machine or sometimes a hole in the wall in British English, is a computerised telecommunications device that provides the clients of a financial institution with access to financial transactions in a public...
s in Spain, thus "avoiding the usual fees for taking out cash or for doing so in a foreign currency".
The bank merged the charitable sections of Abbey, Bradford & Bingley and Alliance & Leicester together as the Santander Foundation.
Planned Expansion
On 4 August 2010 it was confirmed that Santander had purchased the ex-Williams & Glyn's BankWilliams & Glyn's Bank
Williams & Glyn's Bank Limited was established in London in 1970, when the Royal Bank of Scotland merged its two subsidiaries in England and Wales, Williams Deacon's Bank Ltd. and Glyn, Mills & Co...
branded English branches of the Royal Bank of Scotland Group, as well as the National Westminster Bank
National Westminster Bank
National Westminster Bank Plc, commonly known as NatWest, is the largest retail and commercial bank in the United Kingdom and has been part of The Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc since 2000. The Royal Bank of Scotland Group is ranked as the second largest bank in the world by assets...
branches in Scotland after much speculation. This move could also lead to Santander UK taking a minority 25% listing on the London Stock Exchange
London Stock Exchange
The London Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located in the City of London within the United Kingdom. , the Exchange had a market capitalisation of US$3.7495 trillion, making it the fourth-largest stock exchange in the world by this measurement...
, returning Abbey, Bradford & Bingley and Alliance & Leicester back to the FTSE 100 as part of the UK business.
It was also reported that Santander was considering bidding for the Allied Irish Bank (GB)
Allied Irish Bank (GB)
Allied Irish Bank is the trading name of commercial banks operating in Great Britain. AIB Group p.l.c., registered in Belfast, Northern Ireland and regulated by the Financial Services Authority, is the legal entity which also includes First Trust Bank...
business of Allied Irish Banks
Allied Irish Banks
Allied Irish Banks p.l.c. is a major commercial bank based in Ireland.AIB is one of the so called "big four" commercial banks in the state. The bank has one of the largest branch networks in Ireland; only Bank of Ireland fully rivals it. AIB offers a full range of personal and corporate banking...
.
Original UK companies
The three constituent companies—Abbey NationalAbbey National
Abbey National plc was a UK-based bank and former building society, which latterly traded under the Abbey brand name. It became a wholly owned subsidiary of Grupo Santander of Spain in 2004, and was rebranded as Santander in January 2010, forming Santander UK along with the savings business of the...
, Alliance & Leicester
Alliance & Leicester
Alliance & Leicester was a former UK-based bank and PLC, which in later years operated as a trading name of Santander UK before being rebranded as Santander. Alliance & Leicester was legally acquired in May 2010 by Santander UK, and was fully incorporated by 2011...
and Bradford & Bingley
Bradford & Bingley
Bradford & Bingley plc is a British bank with headquarters in the West Yorkshire town of Bingley. In 2008, partly due to the credit crunch, the bank was nationalised and in effect split into two parts; the mortgage book remained with the now publicly owned Bradford & Bingley plc, and the deposits...
—had roots dating back to 1849 as mutual building societies.
The National Freehold Land Society was established by two Liberal Members of Parliament, Sir Joshua Walmsley and Richard Cobden
Richard Cobden
Richard Cobden was a British manufacturer and Radical and Liberal statesman, associated with John Bright in the formation of the Anti-Corn Law League as well as with the Cobden-Chevalier Treaty...
, in 1849. The Abbey Road & St. John's Wood Permanent Benefit Building Society was founded in 1874, based in a Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
church on Abbey Road
Abbey Road (street)
Abbey Road is a thoroughfare located in the borough of Camden and the City of Westminster in London, running roughly northwest to southeast through St. John's Wood, near Lord's Cricket Ground...
in Kilburn. The Abbey National Building Society was formed following the merger in 1944 of what had become Abbey Road Building Society (already the second largest) and National Building Society (at the time the sixth largest). It was the first to demutualise in 1989.
Bradford & Bingley Building Society was formed in 1964 as a result of the merger of the Bradford Equitable Building Society and the Bingley Permanent Building Society, both of which had been established in 1851. It was the last to demutualise, against the board's recommendation, in 2000. Alliance & Leicester Building Society had its roots in the formation of the Leicester Permanent Benefit Society in 1852 which had changed its name to the Leicester Permanent Building Society by the time it started trading in 1853. The Leicester Building Society (which it had become in 1974 on its merger with the Leicester Temperance Building Society) merged with the Alliance (originally Brighton and Sussex) Building Society in 1985 and subsequently demutualised in 1997.
Parent company
Banco Santander, founded in 1857 in SantanderSantander, Cantabria
The port city of Santander is the capital of the autonomous community and historical region of Cantabria situated on the north coast of Spain. Located east of Gijón and west of Bilbao, the city has a population of 183,446 .-History:...
, (Cantabria
Cantabria
Cantabria is a Spanish historical region and autonomous community with Santander as its capital city. It is bordered on the east by the Basque Autonomous Community , on the south by Castile and León , on the west by the Principality of Asturias, and on the north by the Cantabrian Sea.Cantabria...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
) has been the largest bank in Europe in terms of market capitalisation, with a value of €83bn. In early 2011, however, it had been overtaken again by HSBC. It is the third largest bank in the world in terms of profits. Worldwide, Santander consists of 90 million customers, employs over 180,000 people, and operates more than 13,650 branches—more than any other international bank. At the close of 2008, Santander had EUR 1,168 billion in managed funds and €8,876 million in net attributable profit (an increase of 9% from 2007).
Currently, Santander is a corporate sponsor of the McLaren
McLaren
McLaren Racing Limited, trading as Vodafone McLaren Mercedes, is a British Formula One team based in Woking, Surrey, United Kingdom. McLaren is best known as a Formula One constructor but has also competed and won in the Indianapolis 500 and Canadian-American Challenge Cup...
-Mercedes Formula 1 team and the Copa Libertadores de America.
On 1 December 2008, Santander announced that their Formula One sponsorship deal with McLaren will end in 2010, when Santander will become Ferrari's main sponsor. However, in September 2009, Santander announced that it will continue its sponsorship with Vodafone McLaren-Mercedes due to its brand awareness in the UK rising from 20 to 82 percent.