Homaira Akbari

Non-executive director (independent)

Joined the board in 2016.

Nationality: American and French. Born in 1961 in Tehran, Iran.

Education: Doctorate in Experimental Particle Physics from Tufts University and MBA from Carnegie Mellon University.

Experience: She was non-executive director of Gemalto NV and of Veolia Environment S.A., chair and CEO of SkyBitz, Inc., managing director of TruePosition Inc., non-executive director of Covisint Corporation and US Pack Logistics LLC. She has also held various posts at Microsoft Corporation and Thales Group and she was non-executive chair of WorkFusion, Inc.

Other positions of note: She is CEO of AKnowledge Partners, LLC and an independent director of Landstar System, Inc. and of Temenos, AG. She is also a trustee of the French Institute Alliance Française.

Positions in other Santander Group companies: She is a non-executive director of Santander Consumer USA Holdings, Inc. and of PagoNxt, S.L.

Membership of board committees: Audit committee, innovation and technology committee and responsible banking, sustainability and culture committee.