Santander completa la compra de Webster Financial

Banco Santander has finalized the acquisition of American bank Webster Financial, completing the deal nearly six months after announcing the operation. The Spanish bank, led by Ana Botín, announced the purchase of Webster Financial in February for $12.2 billion (around €10.3 billion) to expand its presence in the United States. Following the Federal Reserve's approval and shareholder vote in May, the transaction received final approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency in June and the European Central Bank in July.

Santander expects to realize $800 million in cost synergies, representing 19% of the combined cost base, which will boost Santander USA's return on tangible equity (ROE) to 18% within three years from a current 13.2%. The acquisition aims to complement Santander's U.S. business, which currently focuses on auto financing through Santander Consumer Finance and retail banking via Openbank, which launched in October 2024.

Webster Bank primarily serves the retail segment (80%) and business banking. Santander informed the Spanish regulator CNMV that the capital increase with non-cash contributions, approved at the general shareholders' meeting on March 27, has been executed today. The new shares will be issued at a fixed nominal value of €10.7896 per share, with a total effective capital increase of nearly €3.559 million.

The nominal capital is €164.9 million, and the total premium of almost €3.394 million. All new shares have been fully subscribed and paid, and will be delivered today, bringing Santander's total capital to €7,509,582,970, representing 15.019165940 shares of €0.50 nominal value each.