Banco Santander's share buyback programme

Last update: 05/11/2025

Listed companies reward their shareholders with a portion of their profits. Cash dividends are the most common form of this reward. But some companies' shareholder remuneration offers up an alternative: the share buyback. Here we tell you about our shareholder remuneration.

In application of the shareholder remuneration policy, the board of directors approved the first remuneration cycle charged against 2025 results, which will be made in two parts:

• The payment of an interim cash dividend against 2025 results of €11.50 cents per share, equivalent to c.25% of the Group’s underlying profit in H1’25, 15% higher than its 2024 equivalent, which was paid in November 2025. Including the €11.00 cent dividend per share paid in May 2025, the cash dividend per share paid during 2025 has been 15% higher than that paid in 2024.
• A share buyback programme against 2025 results of up to €1.7 billion, which commenced on 31 July 2025 once the applicable regulatory approval had been obtained.

This programme puts us on track to reach our goal to distribute at least €10 billion through share buybacks charged against 2025 and 2026 results and against expected capital excess*.

Total shareholder remuneration charged against H1’25 results will be approximately €3,400 million, 11% higher than the remuneration charged against H1’24 results. The amount is approximately 50% of H1’25 attributable profit (around 25% through cash dividend payments and around 25% through share buybacks).

At the end of the quarter, TNAV per share was €5.56. Including the final cash dividend against 2024 results and the interim cash dividend charged against 2025 results, TNAV per share increased 15% year-on-year.

^{*As previously announced, Santander intends to allocate at least €10bn to shareholders through share buybacks charged against 2025 and 2026 results and against the expected capital excess. This share buyback target includes i) buybacks that are part of the existing shareholder remuneration policy; and ii) additional buybacks following the publication of annual results to distribute year-end excesses of CET1 capital. The implementation of the shareholder remuneration policy and additional buybacks are subject to future corporate and regulatory decisions and approvals.}

What is a share buyback programme and why is it important for shareholders?

Share buyback is a form of remuneration for a company's shareholders. A share buyback is when companies buy back their own shares from the market, cancel them and, ultimately, reduce share capital. With fewer shares in circulation, each shareholder gets both a larger stake in the company and a higher return on future dividends.

What are the benefits of a share buyback

Here are some of the ways that buybacks work to shareholders' advantage under normal market conditions:

• First, since the company’s value remains the same but the supply of shares is lower, the share price will increase. However, that depends on market behaviour. 
• Second, the earnings per share (EPS) should increase because fewer shares are in circulation. Shareholders will have a greater stake in the company’s profits.
• Unless a shareholder chooses to offload their shares, a buyback is a tax-free transaction.

Imagine a listed company with 1,000 shares, and 100 (10%) of them are held by one shareholder. The company runs a share buyback programme and purchases 100 shares, reducing total share capital to 900 shares. The shareholder, whose stake has just increased by 1.11% to 11.11%, is now entitled to more of the company's profits. Also, the share price should become more attractive to investors.

In short, a share buy-back programme allows companies to generate additional value for their shareholders. Under normal market conditions, the portion of profits that listed companies use to buy back their own shares directly benefits the price of the shares.