Banco Santander reported a record underlying profit of €7,328 million in the first half of 2026, up 15%. Attributable profit reached €8,973 million, up 31%, including a €1.9 billion net capital gain following the completion of the disposal of Santander Bank Polska in January, partially offset by €250 million of restructuring costs related to the integration of TSB. Underlying results exclude these non-recurring items, providing a consistent view of operating performance.
Santander continued to expand its customer base, adding 12 million customers over the last twelve months to reach 182 million in total, driven by strong commercial momentum across all businesses, together with the addition of more than four million TSB customers following the acquisition, which was completed on 30 April.
The bank continued to improve profitability and create value for shareholders, achieving an underlying return on tangible equity (RoTE) of 15.6% (+0.7 percentage points), with underlying earnings per share (EPS) up 20%. Tangible net asset value (TNAV) plus cash dividend per share increased 19%, reflecting sustained value creation driven by higher profitability and disciplined capital allocation.
Business volumes remained strong, with loans increasing 9% and customer funds (deposits + mutual funds) 11% in constant euros, supported by solid commercial momentum across global businesses and the incorporation of TSB. Excluding TSB, loans increased 5% and customer funds 7% (deposits +5%) in constant euros. Loan growth was driven by mortgages in Retail, auto lending in Openbank and double-digit loan growth in CIB.
Total revenue increased 6% to €30,847 million, supported by net interest income of €22,711 million (+7%) and net fee income of €6,851 million (+9%), reflecting higher customer activity, deeper customer relationships and business volume growth across all global businesses. More than 95% of group revenue continues to be linked to customer activity, providing resilience in the current interest rate environment.
Total costs were down (-2% in constant euros excluding TSB), reflecting continued efficiency gains from ONE Transformation, which more than offset inflationary pressures and investments to support business growth. As a result, net operating income increased 12% to €17,636 million, while the efficiency ratio improved by 2.9 percentage points to 42.8%, supported by structurally lower costs and higher revenue.
The group also continued to accelerate the deployment of AI across its businesses, generating €84 million of business value (higher revenue, lower costs and lower loan-loss provisions) in the first half through improved customer service, higher productivity and commercial growth.
Loan-loss provisions increased 9%, mainly reflecting broader market trends in Argentina; excluding this impact, provisions were broadly stable. Credit quality remained solid, with cost of risk at 1.15%, supported by prudent risk management, diversified exposure and historically low unemployment levels across most of the bank’s markets. The non-performing loan ratio improved to 2.93% versus the previous quarter (-7 basis points), remaining at historically low levels, with a coverage ratio of 64%.
The CET1 capital ratio reached 14.0%. Excluding the -55 basis point impact from the TSB acquisition completed on 30 April, the group generated 20 basis points of capital in the quarter through strong organic capital generation. Taking into account the expected impact of the Webster acquisition, Santander remains well positioned to meet its year-end CET1 target between 12.8% and 13%, at the high end of its 12-13% operating range.
Santander continued to deliver attractive shareholder returns, with TNAV plus cash dividend per share up 19%. During the first half, the bank completed the payment of the 2025 cash dividend of 24 euro cents per share, up 14% year-on-year, and continued executing the €5.0 billion share buyback programme announced in February, including the additional distribution linked to the Poland disposal.
Including the share buyback programme currently underway and the expected c.€1.8 billion share buyback programme against H1 2026 earnings, Santander will have delivered c.€9 billion towards its plan to distribute at least €10 billion through share buybacks for 2025 and 2026[3]. The implementation of the programme against H1 2026 results, which has already been approved by the ECB, is subject to the corresponding corporate approvals and its terms will be communicated in due course following approval.
