Santander

Botín anuncia um aumento do dividendo de 25%

Attributable profit excluding capital gains rose 23% to EUR 8.111 billion, with a 21% increase in earnings per share.

• Reflecting the strong results, the Board of Directors increases the dividend by 25% for the third consecutive year, to EUR 0.65 a share, for a payout of EUR 4,070 million, or 50% of ordinary profit.
• The increase in profit was driven by revenue growth of 21%, more than double the rate of growth in costs of 10%, which improved the efficiency ratio by more than four percentage points, to 44.2%.
• All business units contributed to the increase in revenues. Loans and deposits grew by 12%, excluding the exchange rate effect.
• In Continental Europe, attributable profit rose 27% to EUR 4,423 million, with a 14% increase in loans and an 8% increase in customer funds.
• In Latin America, attributable profit rose 27% in dollars, to US$3,648 million, with an increase of 20% in loans and 21% in customer funds, in local currencies. In euros, attributable profit rose 17% to EUR 2,666 million.
• Abbey’s attributable profit rose 20% to £822 million, with growth of 8% in loans and 5% in deposits in pounds. In euros, attributable profit rose 20% to EUR 1,201 million.
• Non-performing loans stood at 0.95%, with a coverage rate of 151%, compared to rates of 0.82% and 179%, respectively, at the close of 2006.
• The capital ratios underline Santander’s high level of solvency, with a BIS ratio of 12.7% and core capital of 6.3%.
• The Group realized net capital gains of EUR 2,348 million in 2007 through assets sales, most notable the sale of real estate properties (EUR 1,076 million), the pension fund management companies in Latin America (EUR 622 million) and the 1.79% stake in Intesa Sanpaolo (EUR 566 million).
• Of these capital gains, EUR 1,398 million will be assigned mainly to adjust the value of the investment in Sovereign (EUR 737 million), to amortize the acquisition of clients in Brazil (EUR 351 million) and to reserves for early retirements (EUR 242 million).The remaining EUR 950 million contribute to attributable profit.

Madrid, February 7, 2008 - Banco Santander registered attributable net profit of EUR 9,060 million in 2007, an increase of 19% from 2006. The result is the highest profit in the history of the bank, which celebrated the 150th anniversary of its founding in 2007, making it the fifth largest bank in the world by profit.
These results are more noteworthy when taking into account the difficult financial environment, which caused large losses at a number of global financial institutions. At the same time, Santander participated, together with The Royal Bank of Scotland and Fortis, in the largest financial sector transaction in history: the acquisition of ABN Amro.
The 2007 results are underpinned by the strong growth in revenues, which doubled that of costs. This allowed recurring profit, without capital gains, to grow by 23%, to EUR 8,111 million. At the same time, Santander in 2007 realized net extraordinary capital gains of EUR 2,348 million, of which EUR 1,398 million have been assigned to extraordinary charges and
EUR 950 million to attributable net profit.
The quality of these results allowed the Board of Directors to approve, for the third consecutive year, a 25% increase in the dividend, with a total charge against 2007 earnings of EUR 0.6508 per share. This will result in a dividend payout of EUR 4,070 million, or 50% of ordinary profit, in line with Santander’s pay-out policy.
Results
Revenues grew by 21%, driven by growth in volumes of 12% and price management, to EUR 27,095 million. Revenues grew at twice the rate of costs, which increased by 10%, allowing net operating income to increase by 32% to EUR 14,842 million. The increase in costs was linked to the opening of a net 326 new branches, bringing the total number of branches in the
Santander network to 11,178, making it the largest retail banking distribution franchise in the western world. Once Banco Real in Brazil is integrated, the Group will have more than 13,000 branches.
The performance in revenue and costs resulted in a significant improvement in efficiency. At the close of 2007, costs equalled 44.2% of total revenues, an improvement of 4.4 percentage points from a year earlier. The businesses in Continental Europe had an efficiency ratio of 38.8%, the U.K. (Abbey) 50.1% and Latin America 41.8%.
The strong increase in net operating income was accompanied by a 41% increase in provisions for bad loans, or an increase of 24% excluding Drive, the U.S. consumer finance company which was consolidated into the Group’s accounts from 2007. Ordinary attributable profit, excluding extraordinaries, was EUR 8,111 million, up 23%.
Apart from these results generated by ordinary activities, in 2007 the Group realized net capital gains of EUR 2,348 million. Among these capital gains, most notable were the EUR 1,076 million generated by the sale of real estate properties, not including the sale of the Ciudad Santander headquarters agreed in January, 2008, which will result in a net capital gain of EUR 605 million. Other sales included the pension fund management companies in Latin America, which generated a gain of EUR 622 million, the 1.79% stake in Intesa Sanpaolo, with capital gains of EUR 566 million and 5.87% of BPI Portugal, with a gain of EUR 84 million. These capital gains have been assigned to an adjustment in the value of the investment in Sovereign (EUR 737 million) and the acquisition of clients in Brazil (EUR 351 million), to reserves for early retirement and other retirement plans (EUR 242 million) and write-offs in Portugal (EUR 68 million).
The difference between the net capital gains and reserves come to EUR 950 million, which contributes to Banco Santander’s final 2007 net profit figure of EUR 9,060 million, an increase of 19%, reinforcing the solvency and capital strength of the Group. Earnings per share came to EUR 1.43, up 17.5% from 2006. Excluding capital gains, earnings per share was EUR 1.28,
an increase of 21.4%.
By geographical areas, Continental Europe recorded net income of EUR 4,423 million, an increase of 27%, as revenue grew by six percentage points more than costs, 20% compared to 14%, respectively..Abbey registered a profit of £822 million (EUR 1,201 million), an increase of 20%, supported by a 7% increase in revenues and a 3% decline in costs. Banco Santander profit in Europe came to EUR 5,624 million, 68% of total Group profit.
In Latin America, attributable profit rose by 27% in dollars, the operating currency, to $3,648 million. In euros, attributable profit was EUR 2,666 million, up 17%. The greatest contribution was made by Brazil, which rose by 32%, to $1,239 million (EUR 905 million); followed by Mexico, with an increase of 35% to $894 million (EUR 654 million) and Chile, where
attributable profit increased by 29% to $743 million (EUR 543 million).
By businesses, retail banking registered ordinary pretax profit (excluding capital gains and extraordinary write-offs) of EUR 9,339 million, up 26%; Global Wholesale Banking EUR 1,830 million, up 28%; and Asset Management and Insurance EUR 537 million, up 14%. The quality of these results is underpinned by the roughly 20% growth in retail banking seen in all markets, while 78% of Global Wholesale Banking revenue is generated by customer business. Asset management and insurance contribute recurring revenues of EUR 3,600 million to the Group.
Business
Santander concluded 2007 with EUR 1,063,892 million in funds under management, an increase of 6%. Of these, EUR 912,915 million are on the balance sheet, up 9%. The rest are off-balance mutual funds, pensions and other customer funds, which amount to EUR 159,986 million. Excluding the effect of certain currencies’ depreciations, Banco Santander in 2007 grew by 12% in lending as well as in customer funds.
Group gross lending was EUR 574,172 million at the end of the year, up 8%. Continental Europe accounted for 55% of this lending, the United Kingdom (Abbey) 33% and Latin America the remaining 12%.
In Continental Europe, lending grew by 14%, to EUR 310,618 million, with increases in all countries and units. In Spain, lending grew by 13%, with mortgage business slowing to 11%. Lending in the Santander branch network in Spain increased by 11%, Banesto by 21%, Portugal by 6% and Santander Consumer Finance by 16%.
The Santander branch network in Spain continued implementing its successful ”We want to be your bank” programme, launched in 2006, which resulted in linked customers totalling 4 million versus 2.4 million two years ago. Net branch growth in 2007 was 55. Lending volume to individuals grew by 8% and to SMEs and companies by 18%. Banesto grew by 13% in loans to individuals and 27% in loans to SMEs and companies.
In Portugal, Santander Totta grew lending by 6%, due to less lending for large transactions, while loans to individuals grew by 9% and SME and company lending by 21%.
Santander Consumer continued its expansion, both organic (branch openings in Germany and Italy) and through selective acquisitions (Drive in the U.S.). Activity was affected by rising interest rates and the decline in auto purchases. New lending grew 6%, with direct lending increasing 20% and card financing 18%. Loans for auto purchases fell 1%.
Loan volume in Latin America came to EUR 68,854 million, an increase of 14% in euros and 20% in local currencies. Brazil, which opened 78 branches last year, increased lending by 32%, with growth of 28% in lending to individuals and 41% to SMEs. Mexico, which opened 49 branches, grew by 25%, with increases of 30% in lending to individuals, and 66% to SMEs. Chile, where 97 new branches were opened, increased lending by 19%, with growth of 15% to individuals and 19% to SMEs.
Abbey continued with its restructuring, closing the year with loan volume of EUR 184,086 million, an increase of 8% in pounds. Net mortgage production in 2007 amounted to £8,800 million, up £1,000 million, or 12%, from 2006.
At the close of 2007, the non-performing loan rate continued to be below one percentage point, at 0.95%, growing 0.13 point from the previous year. The coverage ratio stood at 151%, down 28 points. The Group’s provisions amount to EUR 9,302 million, of which EUR 6,027 million were generic.
The Group’s total customer funds under management came to EUR 784,995 million at the end of 2007, a like-for-like increase of 9% from a year earlier. Balance sheet resources rose 10% to EUR 625,009 million. Off-balance sheet resources declined due to the sale of the Latin American pension fund management companies, which had EUR 18,052 million in funds under management at the close of 2006. Excluding this impact, off-balance sheet funds under management grew by 3%.
In Continental Europe, total customer funds under management were EUR 323,602 million, up 8%, accounting for 48% of the Group’s total managed customer funds. Customer funds under management in Spain grew by 5%, or 8% if the placement of the EUR 7,000 million Valores Santander issue for the financing of the ABN Amro purchase is included. Santander Consumer Finance grew by 33%.
In Latin America, customer funds came to EUR 137,682 million, down 1% due to the sale of the pension fund management companies. Excluding this effect, funds under management grew by 14% in euros or 21% in local currencies. In Brazil, savings grew by 30%, with 22% increase in deposits and 36% in investment funds. In Mexico, customer funds grew by 12%, with deposits increasing by 6% and investment funds by 24%. In Chile, growth was 18%, with deposits up 16% and investment funds up 24%.
Abbey ended 2007 with EUR 216,672 million in customer funds, up 5%, or 15% in pounds. Net inflow of deposits was £3,200 million in 2007, nearly three times the amount of a year earlier, when they were £1,100 million. Growth was achieved without increasing costs, as the margin of Abbey’s customer funds portfolio improved during the period.
The acquisition of ABN AMRO
On May 29th, Banco Santander, together with The Royal Bank of Scotland and Fortis, announced its intention to put forward an offer to acquire ABN Amro. The offer was made on July 20th. The amount offered by the three banks for each ABN Amro share was EUR 35.60 per share in cash and 0.296 new RBS shares.
Santander’s investment in its share of the assets was EUR 19,900 million, an amount that will come down to EUR 10,100 million as a result of the sale of Antonveneta, its Interbanca unit and a small Dutch consumer finance company that was also allotted to Santander. At the same time, Santander will acquire RBS’ global clients business in Brazil, so that Santander’s estimated final investment in the acquisition of ABN Amro assets, basically Banco Real, will amount to EUR 10,500 million.
The share and dividend
At the close of 2007, Santander’s eligible capital came to EUR 65,225 million, with a surplus of EUR 24,021 million above the required minimum. With this capital base, the BIS ratio came to 12.7%, Tier I capital to 7.7% and core capital to 6.3%. These ratios underscore Santander’s capital strength.
The Santander share ended the year at EUR 14.79 euros, up 4.6% from a year earlier, making it the only bank in the Eurostoxx with a positive performance in 2007. At the end of the year, Santander’s market capitalization amounted to EUR 92,501 million. Santander is the leading bank in the euro zone and the eighth in the world by market value.
The Board of Directors has agreed that the total dividend charged against 2007 earnings will amount to EUR 0.6508 per share, an increase of 25% for the third consecutive year. Santander has already paid three of the four annual dividends, amounting to EUR 0.1229 each. The fourth one, totalling EUR 0.2820 per share, will be paid in May. The share’s dividend yield came to 4.67% in 2007. In the last ten years, the dividend has registered annual cumulative growth of 14%. In 2007, profit distributed to shareholders will amount to EUR 4,070 million (50% of ordinary attributable profit), a record for Santander.
Santander has 2,278,321 shareholders. 131,819 persons work in the Group, serving 65 million customers in 11,178 branches.

Banco Santander, comprometido con la educación superior

La Universidad desempeña un papel fundamental en la sociedad del conocimiento, donde actúa como guía hacia una sociedad innovadora, que contribuya al cambio económico y social, y apoye los avances y progresos científicos y tecnológicos.
Banco Santander, a través de la División Global Santander Universidades, colabora desde hace más de 15 años con las universidades con una iniciativa única en el mundo, que le distingue del resto de bancos e instituciones financieras nacionales e internacionales.
Emilio Botín, presidente de Banco Santander, consideró que el banco, además de ser competitivo, había de caracterizarse por ser útil a las sociedades en las que está presente. Este compromiso se asienta en el convencimiento de que la mejor manera de contribuir al crecimiento y al progreso económico y social es apoyando el sistema de educación superior y de investigación.
Santander Universidades colabora con casi 1.000 universidades de América, Asia y Europa, estando presente en Alemania (2), Argentina (66), Brasil (423), Chile (56), China (7), EEUU (25), España (92), México (147), Polonia (20), Portugal (43), Puerto Rico (8),Reino Unido (55), Rusia (8), Singapur (1), y Uruguay (8).
A través de Santander Universidades, Banco Santander ha destinado durante 2011 más de 110 millones de euros a proyectos de colaboración con  universidades de América, Asia y Europa.
José Antonio Villasante Cerro, director general de Banco Santander y director de la División Global Santander Universidades, dirige a los más de 2.130 profesionales de 15 países que coordinan y gestionan el compromiso de Banco Santander con la educación superior. Para el banco, contribuir al pleno acceso al conocimiento y a una educación superior de calidad constituye la mejor vía para avanzar hacia sociedades abiertas y prósperas. En palabras de Emilio Botín, “el aumento del empleo y el desarrollo del bienestar se basa en la educación, la investigación y el esfuerzo”.
Santander Universidades apoya el desarrollo de iniciativas académicas relacionadas con programas de becas y prácticas profesionales, proyectos docentes; difusión del español; programas de investigación; relación Universidad - Empresa; nuevas tecnologías -la Tarjeta Universitaria Inteligente (TUI)- y proyectos globales, como RedEmprendia, Universia y la Biblioteca Virtual Miguel de Cervantes.