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The British unit of Spanish lender Banco Santander on Wednesday said 750 of its staff were at risk of redundancy as it targets 95 branch closures in the U.K.
The decision is part of the bank’s broader plans to update its presence from June 2025 and will bring Santander UK’s network to 349 branches, including 290 that are full-service, 36 operating with reduced hours and 18 that are counter-free and five Work Cafes.
“Closing a branch is always a very difficult decision and we spend a great deal of time assessing where and when we do this and how to minimise the impact it may have on our customers,” a Santander UK spokesperson said.
The bank further noted a “a rapid movement of customers choosing to do their banking digitally,” flagging it has observed a 63% boost in digital transactions versus a 61% decline in dealings done at physical branches since 2019.
Santander said it was consulting unions over the proposed changes. The bank employs around 18,000 full-time staff in the U.K., according to the annual report of the British unit.
Questions have risen over the future of Santander’s international footprint, just two decades since its acquisition of Abbey National brought it to the front of Britain’s high street. At the start of the year, the Financial Times reported that the lender could be considering an exit from its U.K. operations, which Santander Executive Chair Ana Botin has since repeatedly refuted.
“The UK is a core market for Santander and this has not changed,” a Santander spokesperson told CNBC on Wednesday.
In October, Reuters reported Santander CEO Hector Grisi forecast the lender would trim more than 1,400 jobs from its British business by the time it finalizes a cost-cutting drive, without specifying a timeline.
The lender has faced some tumult in Britain, setting aside £295 million ($382.7 million) in November to cover possible payouts linked to a broader industry probe into motor finance commissions.
Back in February, Spain’s largest lender reported record fourth-quarter profit up 11% year on year to 3.265 billion euros ($3.56 billion), further announcing plans for 10 billion euros ($10.89 billion) in share buybacks from 2025 and 2026 earnings and anticipated excess capital.