Exclusive: Santander to cut headcount at corporate HQ and at Spanish unit

Spanish lender Santander will carry out a reorganisation of its operations in its home country with a view to increasing its digital footprint, simplifying its internal processes and avoiding undesirable overlaps between different units.

As a part of the restructuring, Spain’s largest banking group plans to reduce headcount at its corporate headquarters and in Santander Spain, the bank said in a letter sent to staff and seen by Digital Look.

However, the majority of staff affected by the changes would be offered other posts within the lender or otherwise reshuffled within the group, according to arrangements with unions, the statement read.

Santander boss Jose Antonio Alvarez referenced the impact of poor macroeconomic trends on the lender's profits, regulatory pressures and the need to keep investing in technology as the factors behind the decision.

A fortnight ago, the lender went against the grain among European banks by revealing that it planned to increase its dividend by 5%, raising 2016 payout to €0.21 a share — from €0.20 in 2015 — and pay €0.165 of it in cash.

This came a little more than a year after Santander slashed the 2015 dividend by two-thirds — from €0.60 to €0.20 — in attempt to shore-up its capital reserves.

The Spanish lender's UK arm is understood to be among those interested in acquiring Royal Bank of Scotland's challenger bank Williams & Glyn, which is due to be sold by the end of 2017 as a condition of RBS's 2008 state bailout.