Santander reports AI business growth of $96M
Bank expects growth to reach $1B through 2028
Banco Santander said targeted deployment of AI across its operations has created €84 million ($96 million) in business value in the first half of the year.
“Our network businesses are generating strong positive jaws and our global technology platforms continue to improve productivity while we start to capture benefits from AI,” Chief Executive Hector Grisi said on the bank’s first-half earnings call today.
The bank calculates AI business value as incremental revenue, cost savings and lower loan-loss provisions generated by its data and AI initiatives, according to the earnings report.
The $2.1 trillion bank is using AI to boost productivity and improve customer service, Grisi said.
AI allows Santander Bank to improve client experience, cross-sell products and make better underwriting decisions, according to the report.The bank aims to continue investing in AI to improve productivity and personalization and reduce costs across its footprint, according to the earnings report.
The Madrid-based bank expects AI growth to generate more than $1 billion between 2025 and the end of 2028.
BY THE NUMBERS: In Q2, Santander reported:
- $17.8 billion in total income, up 6% year over year;
(Courtesy/FinAi News)
- $744 million in information technology spending, up 4% quarter over quarter;
- 185,279 employees, down 4.3% YoY; and
- 61.9 million digital customers, up 8.3% YoY.
Headcount
The bank is focused on simplifying workflows and automating, Grisi said.
“The focus is not the headcount reduction per se,” Chief Financial Officer Jose García Cantera said on the earnings call. “The headcount reduction is obviously the consequence of implementing ONE Transformation.”
Announced in 2022, ONE Transformation is the bank’s corporate strategy to develop a technology-first operating model.
The program is helping the bank implement new AI tech with ease, Gris said, adding that “ONE Transformation remains a key driver of our profitability improvement.”
Editor’s note: All amounts have been converted to U.S. dollars.
Shares of Santander Bank [Nasdaq: SAN] were trading at $13.7 at market close today, up 0.6% from market open. SAN has a market capitalization of $200 billion
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