Most European banks are doing fine. Santander just did better than that.
The Spanish lender said Wednesday it posted a record Q1 profit of €3.6 billion, up 12% year over year, on broad-based gains across retail, payments, and corporate banking. CEO Hector Grisi called it "another excellent quarter."
Total revenue grew 6% to €15 billion in constant euros. Net interest income, the difference between what the bank earns on loans and pays on deposits, rose 5%. Fees climbed 7%. Together they made up about 95% of total income.
Cost discipline did the rest. Costs fell 1% year over year, or 4% in real terms after inflation. The efficiency ratio, which measures how much it costs to generate each euro of revenue, improved to 42.8%.
The bank added 8 million new customers year over year, which Grisi credited as part of the "network benefits" across the bank's global footprint.
Santander's CET1 capital ratio, which measures core capital relative to risk-weighted assets, hit an all-time high of 14.4%, up 90 basis points in the quarter. About 39 basis points came from the disposal of Santander Polska, net of an additional €3.2 billion share buyback.
The bank has now returned €7 billion to shareholders against a €10 billion commitment for 2025 and 2026, with the dividend per share up 19%.
The headline number had one provision tucked inside. Santander booked an additional €207 million pre-tax provision for the UK motor finance issue. Total stock provision now stands at €725 million (£633 million).
"We believe we're done," Grisi said.
That matters because UK car loan misselling has been a multi-year drag on European bank earnings. Santander is now signaling it has the issue fully reserved. The pending TSB and Webster acquisitions are expected to cost about 210 basis points of CET1 capital, phased across the second and third quarters.
Grisi reiterated the bank's "North Star" of ROTE above 20% by 2028. Santander's 2026 commitment is to deliver in line with what it told investors at the start of the year. The next data point is the close of the TSB acquisition, expected in Q2.
