Santander pins €1bn enterprise worth achieve on AI

Santander expects its investments in synthetic intelligence (AI) to ship €1bn in enterprise worth, by way of cost-cutting and income progress.

Presenting its plan for the following two years at an occasion in London, the Spanish heritage financial institution stated information and AI are necessary components of its wider One Transformation digital programme.

On the investor occasion, Santander introduced its 2026-28 plans, which included a goal to extend its buyer base from 180 million right now to 200 million by 2028. Santander introduced its deliberate acquisition of TSB final yr, which can see the financial institution’s UK buyer base develop by about 5 million.

The financial institution additionally outlined the enterprise worth that information and synthetic intelligence will ship by 2028.

It stated that by 2028, it expects to generate over €1bn of enterprise worth yearly, by way of price financial savings and revenues, from information and AI initiatives.

“Investments in information and AI are a key lever of One Transformation, totally embedded within the companies, and targeted on hyper-personalised buyer journeys, AI-powered frontline productiveness and end-to-end course of automation,” Santander stated in a press release.

The financial institution’s govt chair, Ana Botín, stated: “We’re constructing a world monetary companies platform, leveraging a decade of funding in expertise and AI.”

AI acceleration

The financial institution accelerated its use of AI final yr after making €200m in price financial savings the yr earlier than. In August 2025, it introduced obligatory AI coaching for all of its employees beginning this yr, in its plan to make the expertise a part of its DNA.

In addition to the obligatory AI coaching plan for all workers, which incorporates educating accountable AI use, the financial institution is providing coaching to its improvement, advertising and frontline employees.

Santander is just not the one financial institution reaping the advantages from AI. The variety of UK banks reporting productiveness beneficial properties from the expertise has doubled as initiatives transfer from pilots to manufacturing.

Based on Lloyds Banking Group’s newest Monetary establishments sentiment survey, 59% of surveyed companies reported AI-driven productiveness beneficial properties prior to now 12 months, in contrast with 32% within the 2024 survey.

Banks additionally reported rising returns from AI in different areas. The newest survey discovered that 21% of respondents imagine AI is instantly driving enterprise progress, in contrast with 8% within the survey a yr in the past.

In the meantime, a 3rd (33%) of respondents stated AI is enhancing buyer experiences, up from 14% within the earlier survey. The identical quantity stated they’ve deeper buyer insights by way of AI, in contrast with 18% in final yr’s survey.

Price-cutting has limits

Whereas banks can save enormous quantities in working prices by way of AI, they have to use it to enhance buyer experiences and choices or face diminished income.

Based on McKinsey’s newest report, whereas AI financial savings may very well be as much as 20%, taking account of the price of the expertise, banking business income may fall 9% as prospects transfer cash based mostly on AI agent suggestions.

“The impression of financial savings, whereas welcome, gained’t final,” McKinsey stated. “As with earlier improvements, competitors will doubtless erode the beneficial properties for banks and many of the advantages will accrue to prospects over time.”

The report stated $23tn of the worldwide whole of $70tn in shopper deposits sits in present accounts with zero rates of interest, with a lot of the rest in low-interest accounts.

“If simply 5% to 10% of [current account] balances migrated to top-of-market charges, an motion that is perhaps prompted by AI brokers, that would scale back the banking business’s whole deposit income by 20% or extra,” McKinsey stated.