Banco Santander reported a profit of 3.402 million euros in the first quarter of the year, 19.3% higher than in the same period of the previous year, driven by the increase in commissions - reaching record levels - and by the new banking tax accounting.
Last year, the entity fully charged the 335 million euros it had to pay for the tax in the first quarter, compared to the 87 million registered in this first quarter of 2025 corresponding to the first payment of the new version of the tax; without this change, the year-on-year profit growth would be 10%.
Nevertheless, the bank has presented solid results supported by the increase in commission income, cost reduction, and the diversification of its businesses and geographies, allowing it to navigate more comfortably through the commercial and macroeconomic instability generated by the trade war initiated by Donald Trump.
This is one of the risks closely monitored by the group chaired by Ana Botín, which has long been betting on the US market and, despite the uncertainty, continues to firmly maintain that commitment for the future. "I believe it will be a very good year in the US," said the CEO of the entity, Héctor Grisi, during the presentation of the first-quarter results on Wednesday. However, they anticipate that the White House's tariff strategy will negatively impact the expected growth for the country this year and are monitoring the potential impact on their operations in the country. "We see that the business is performing well, especially in autos. The most important thing is for employment to be sustained, and this is what we are reviewing, but we are not negative about what may happen in North America," Grisi said.
They are more optimistic about Europe, where they are beginning to identify "many opportunities" both in business investment and credit in countries like Spain and Portugal.
The entity faces these prospects with a profit that has set a record for the fourth consecutive quarter. Revenues increased by 1%, reaching 15.537 million euros, with record commission revenues supported by increased activity and client growth, despite a 5% decrease in net interest income, down to 11.983 million.
Specifically, commission revenues amounted to 3.369 million euros, a 4% increase, driven by the strong performance of most businesses, while costs decreased by 1%, improving the efficiency ratio, which stood at 41.8%, a 0.8 percentage point improvement.
In the first three months of the year, Santander increased its clients by 9 million - five of them digital clients - reaching a total of 175 million.
The President of Banco Santander, Ana Botín, highlighted the good start of the year and stated that the entity is on track to achieve its goals for 2025. Objectives that they are currently maintaining, including reaching revenues of around 62.000 million euros and a return on tangible assets (RoTE) of 16.5% for the year.
In this first quarter, the return on tangible assets (RoTE) stood at 15.8% and the CET1 capital ratio, with a target of 13% for 2025, is very close at 12.9%.
Client resources (deposits and investment funds) grew by 5% in constant euros, with a 3% increase in deposits in euros, driven by retail and consumer business growth and an increased number of clients. Meanwhile, loans increased by 1% in constant euros, reaching 1.02 trillion euros, and delinquency dropped below 3% for the first time in 15 years.
By business segments, the attributed profit of Retail & Commercial Banking grew by 28%, reaching 1.902 million euros, while Digital Consumer Bank recorded 492 million, a 6% increase.
Corporate & Investment Banking, the division serving corporate and institutional clients, achieved a historic attributed profit of 806 million euros, an 18% increase, with record revenues of 2.220 million euros, up by 8%.
Wealth Management & Insurance, including private banking, asset management, and insurance businesses of the group, increased its attributed profit by 28%, reaching 471 million euros, and Payments (digital payment solutions and card business) earned 126 million euros, a 30% increase, driven by double-digit growth in net interest margin and commission revenues.