Banco Santander's share buyback programme

Last update: 04/02/2026

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 current shareholder remuneration policy, the Group carried out the following against 2025 results:

• A payment of an interim cash dividend of €11.50 cents per share, paid in November 2025, equivalent to c.25% of the Group’s underlying profit in H1 2025, 15% higher than its 2024 equivalent. Including the €11.00 cent dividend per share paid in May 2025, the cash dividend per share paid during 2025 was also 15% higher than that paid in 2024.
  
  
• The first share buyback programme of €1.7 billion, carried out between 31 July 2025 and 23 December 2025.
  
  
• Total shareholder remuneration charged against H1 2025 results was €3,399 million, 11% higher than the remuneration charged against H1 2024 results. The amount is approximately 50% of H1 2025 attributable profit (around 25% through cash dividend payments and around 25% through share buybacks).
  
  
• Additionally, the Board of Directors has approved on 4 February 2026 the implementation of a share buy-back programme for an approximate amount of €5,030 million, for which the Bank has already obtained the necessary regulatory authorization and is currently underway. In line with the Bank’s current shareholder remuneration policy* , €1,830 million corresponds to an amount equivalent to approximately 25% of the Group’s underlying profit for the second half of 2025. The remainder of the programme relates to an extraordinary share buy-back of €3,200 million, representing approximately 50% of the CET1 capital generated following the completion of the sale of 49% of Santander Bank Polska to Erste Group. You can find all the information about the share buyback program here.
  
  
• The board of directors is expected to submit the approval of a final cash dividend, in accordance with the current shareholder remuneration policy, at the next general shareholders’meeting. As a result, the total cash dividend per share charged against 2025 results is estimated to be approximately 15% higher than that charged against 2024 results.

^{*The Bank’s current shareholder remuneration policy consists of a total remuneration target of c.50% of the Group’s underlying profit, split approximately in equal parts in cash dividend payments and share buybacks.
As previously announced, Santander intends to allocate at least €10 billion 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 is 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.