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- Eight million new customers, bringing the total to 176 million
- Half-year profit rose 13% year-on-year
- Return on tangible equity (RoTE) increased to 16% post-AT1
- CET1 capital ratio reached 13% thanks to strong organic generation
Don't miss these key takeways
• Revenue was stable (€31 billion), with the bank achieving record net fee income (+3% year-on-year)[1].
• Operating expenses fell by 0.4%, reflecting the bank’s transformation towards a simpler, more digital and integrated model. As a result, the efficiency ratio improved to 41.5%, its best level in over 15 years.
• Credit quality improved, with cost of risk at 1.14% (-7 basis points), reflecting the strength of the diversified balance sheet and historically low levels of unemployment across most of Santander’s markets.
• The sale of Santander Poland crystallizes value at 2.2x tangible book value, while the acquisition of TSB generates a return of >20%, increasing RoTE in the UK to 16% by 20282. This reflects Santander’s commitment to accretive capital redeployment.
• The bank reaffirms 2025 targets and expects to deliver at least €10 billion in share buybacks from 2025 and 2026 earnings and excess capital ahead of the initial timetable3.
• Today, Santander announces a new share buyback programme of c.€1.7bn, c.25% of the profit in the first half3.
Santander delivered an attributable profit of €6,833 million in the first half of 2025, up 13% compared to the same period last year. This marks the strongest first half on record, driven by robust net interest income, record net fee income, and lower costs and provisions. Profit in the second quarter alone was €3,431 million (+7%), setting a fifth consecutive quarterly record.
The group continued to increase profitability and shareholder-value creation, with a return on tangible equity (RoTE) of 16% post-AT1 (up 0.9 percentage points), earnings per share (EPS) of €0.43 (up 19%), and tangible net asset value (TNAV) per share of €5.50 at the end of the first half of 2025. Including the cash dividends from 2024 results paid in November and May, total value creation (TNAV plus cash dividend per share) increased by 16%.
In the first half of 2025, customer funds (deposits and mutual funds) grew 6% in constant euros, with deposits up by 4% and mutual funds up 17% in constant euros. Loans rose 1% in constant euros to €1 trillion, as growth in lending within Consumer, Wealth and Payments offset a decline in volumes in CIB and slight fall in Retail due to lower volumes in SMEs and corporates, reflecting the bank’s focus on profitable growth and capital optimization.
Total income for H1 2025 was flat year-on-year at €31,010 million (+5% in constant euros), on track to meet the 2025 target, as record net fee income (+3%, or +9% in constant euros, to €6,684 million) thanks to higher activity and customer growth offset a slight drop in net interest income (-3%, but +4% in constant euros excluding Argentina), which remained resilient despite a less favourable interest rate environment.
The efficiency ratio improved to 41.5%, reflecting the effect of the group’s ONE Transformation programme, which provides greater operational leverage, improving business dynamics and promoting leaner and more agile structures.
The continued replacement of legacy technology with shared global technology platforms, such as Santander’s cloud-based core banking platform Gravity, has helped the bank achieve cumulative savings of nearly €550 million since December 2022. Santander is one of the first major global banks to digitalize its core banking system, with Santander Spain completing its migration in June. These investments and initiatives have helped the bank reduce costs (-0.4% in euros in the first half of 2025) and achieve the best efficiency ratio in more than 15 years.
[1] Reconciliation of underlying results to statutory results, available in the ‘Alternative Performance Measures’ section of the financial report at CNMV and at santander.com.
2 Transactions pending closing and subject to conditions, including regulatory approvals.
3 As announced on 1 July 2025, Santander intends to allocate at least €10bn to shareholder remuneration in the form of share buybacks, corresponding to the 2025 and 2026 results, as well as to the expected excess capital. This share buyback target includes: (i) buybacks that are part of the existing shareholder remuneration policy outlined below, and (ii) additional buybacks following the publication of annual results to distribute year-end excesses of CET1 capital. The current remuneration policy for the 2025 results, which the board intends to apply, will remain the same as for the 2024 results, consisting of a total shareholder remuneration of approximately 50% of the Group's reported profit (excluding non-cash and non-capital ratios impact items), distributed in approximately equal parts between cash dividends and share buybacks. The execution of the shareholder remuneration policy and share buybacks to distribute the excess CET1 capital is subject to corporate and regulatory decisions and approvals.
Once again, we are delivering improving profitability and growth, adding eight million customers in the past year, resulting in a fifth consecutive quarter of record profit with RoTE reaching 16% and earnings per share up 19%.
