WEBVTT - Ana Botin

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<v Speaker 1>One of the most successful banks in the world is

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<v Speaker 1>actually based in Spain, but operates all over the world.

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<v Speaker 1>It's Banco Santander. For four generations, the Botin family has

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<v Speaker 1>controlled and led Banco Santander and helped build it into

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<v Speaker 1>a global behemoth in the banking world. I had a

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<v Speaker 1>chance to sit down with the executive chairman, Ana Botin,

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<v Speaker 1>to talk about how she's operating in the new world

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<v Speaker 1>of banking, particularly as artificial intelligence comes into this world.

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<v Speaker 1>What is it about Banco Santander that enabled it to

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<v Speaker 1>grow from a city in Spain to a global bank,

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<v Speaker 1>what would you say is the single or the two

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<v Speaker 1>most important things that enable you to be this successful?

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<v Speaker 2>We have a culture of constantly reinventing ourselves, of disrupting ourselves.

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<v Speaker 2>We have always been brave on that side. We were

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<v Speaker 2>the first to have the automated tellers, the first to

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<v Speaker 2>build our own core technology back in the 90s. which

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<v Speaker 2>we then actually, we got behind. So we're trying to

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<v Speaker 2>do that in a better way. So reinventing yourself, be

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<v Speaker 2>willing to disrupt yourself with three things in mind. First

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<v Speaker 2>is remaining relevant to your customers. So it's not how

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<v Speaker 2>I see the product, it's how you as a customer

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<v Speaker 2>see the product. You know, an example is unsecured lending.

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<v Speaker 2>It's the same thing as buy now, pay later, but

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<v Speaker 2>from the customer point of view, it's not the same.

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<v Speaker 2>So customer point of view, trust, super important. and really

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<v Speaker 2>staying true to your values. You know, think what comes next.

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<v Speaker 1>Now, you must have observed there are very few women

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<v Speaker 1>at the top of major commercial banks. Why do you

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<v Speaker 1>think that is? And do you think it's changing?

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<v Speaker 2>It takes time because, you know, I think women have

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<v Speaker 2>a bigger issue with speaking up and raising their hand

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<v Speaker 2>and saying, I can do that job and I can

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<v Speaker 2>do more. It's something I've seen for years. Hasn't changed.

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<v Speaker 2>A lot of the ways that people get promoted is

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<v Speaker 2>because they have strong relationships. They go and play golf.

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<v Speaker 2>They go and do things that are usually men. And

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<v Speaker 2>so that also doesn't help at all. So we need

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<v Speaker 2>to be actively helping women because otherwise they don't get

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<v Speaker 2>the same chance. I think everybody should get the same chance.

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<v Speaker 1>Your last quarter was very strong. You had strong earnings growth.

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<v Speaker 1>What areas did the growth come from? And what makes

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<v Speaker 1>you optimistic about the future based on the last quarter?

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<v Speaker 2>So our first quarter results were very much on track

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<v Speaker 2>towards our three-year targets. We did especially well on our

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<v Speaker 2>retail bank and especially well in Europe retail. So Spain

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<v Speaker 2>is growing four times as fast as the rest of Europe.

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<v Speaker 2>And that has been a key growth market this year.

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<v Speaker 2>Mexico is doing really well. Again, a country that's growing

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<v Speaker 2>more this year than last year. But importantly, we did

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<v Speaker 2>three M &amp; A transactions last year. We sold Poland

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<v Speaker 2>and we bought into the UK and US. So one

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<v Speaker 2>of the things that will give Santander, as we've said

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<v Speaker 2>in the first quarter, a differential increase in return on

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<v Speaker 2>tangible equity and earnings per share will be the integration

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<v Speaker 2>of the M &amp; A.

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<v Speaker 1>After the Great Recession, many European banks suffered a bit.

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<v Speaker 1>American banks suffered, but they came back. And now... the

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<v Speaker 1>American banks tend to be more dominant than the European

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<v Speaker 1>banks were. Banco Santander is an exception. But why do

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<v Speaker 1>you think the European banks haven't played as big a

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<v Speaker 1>role on the global scene as the American banks have lately?

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<v Speaker 2>So that's a great question. And there's no easy answer.

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<v Speaker 2>It's a number of factors. One is the size of

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<v Speaker 2>the market. So Europe is not really a single market

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<v Speaker 2>in services or banking. The U.S.

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<v Speaker 1>Is.

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<v Speaker 2>It took us six years to launch our digital bank

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<v Speaker 2>in Germany. It took us two years to launch Open

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<v Speaker 2>Bank across the United States. So size of the market, growth,

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<v Speaker 2>Europe has grown slower than the United States has over

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<v Speaker 2>the last decade, much slower. And the third factor is

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<v Speaker 2>regulation and supervision. That's a huge tax on businesses and

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<v Speaker 2>people and economies. And it has been tougher in Europe

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<v Speaker 2>than it has in the US. A combination of all

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<v Speaker 2>those things, I think, is what's behind it. I do

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<v Speaker 2>not think we run banks worse in Europe than the country.

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<v Speaker 2>I think we run banks in general pretty well.

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<v Speaker 1>Now, you also have a very big presence in Latin America,

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<v Speaker 1>particularly in Brazil. How did you get to be so

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<v Speaker 1>big in Brazil? That's not a Spanish-speaking country.

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<v Speaker 2>Things happen sequentially. So we started in the Spanish-speaking markets

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<v Speaker 2>like Mexico, Chile. Brazil was in the 90s. Actually, I

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<v Speaker 2>was the one in charge of Latin America at the time.

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<v Speaker 2>We started with a small bank, but very importantly, with

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<v Speaker 2>a local team. So we started actually with a corporate

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<v Speaker 2>bank and knowledge of the market. And then from there,

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<v Speaker 2>when there were opportunities to acquire banks, we started with

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<v Speaker 2>a small one and then a bigger one. We became

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<v Speaker 2>very good at integrating banks and we became very good

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<v Speaker 2>in technology. And that is what allowed us to grow

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<v Speaker 2>in Brazil into the second largest private bank.

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<v Speaker 1>Now, you've made an acquisition in the United States, Webster Financial,

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<v Speaker 1>for which I think you paid about $ 12 billion. What

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<v Speaker 1>is Webster Financial, and is that making you a bigger

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<v Speaker 1>presence in the United States now?

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<v Speaker 2>You should think of us as a global bank with

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<v Speaker 2>a very strong presence in Europe and the Americas. And

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<v Speaker 2>so that is the essential core of Santander. What Webster

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<v Speaker 2>brings is precisely the commercial bank business that we didn't

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<v Speaker 2>have in the United States. You think of Webster as...

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<v Speaker 2>integrating with Santander Bank, which was a consumer bank. So

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<v Speaker 2>it's a very complementary business. It's a very cheap funding,

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<v Speaker 2>so they have a lot of retail deposits. And so

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<v Speaker 2>the combination of very attractive funding with the commercial bank side,

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<v Speaker 2>which is essentially what Santander is in other countries, make

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<v Speaker 2>it the perfect match.

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<v Speaker 1>You expect to make other acquisitions in the United States,

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<v Speaker 1>or this will be the core acquisition around which you'll

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<v Speaker 1>build your business in the United States?

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<v Speaker 2>We have always said, and I continue to say, that

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<v Speaker 2>we have a lot of organic profitable growth. This is

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<v Speaker 2>unique compared to other banks. When we see very strong

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<v Speaker 2>strategic fit that makes financial sense, i.e. it's above a

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<v Speaker 2>cost of equity, buybacks, and it competes well with organic

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<v Speaker 2>profitable growth, then we consider acquisitions. But we are very

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<v Speaker 2>focused on integration right now.

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<v Speaker 1>Is the biggest source of your profitability consumer banking or

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<v Speaker 1>is it commercial banking?

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<v Speaker 2>Consumer and commercial together is 70%, probably 80%. The rest

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<v Speaker 2>is the corporate investment bank and wealth management. So around 80%

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<v Speaker 2>of our business is retail and commercial. And that is

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<v Speaker 2>about half and half. Half is consumer and individuals. The

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<v Speaker 2>other half is the 4 million SMEs and commercial customers.

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<v Speaker 1>Now, many European banks say that the regulations in Europe

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<v Speaker 1>are tougher than they are in the United States. And

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<v Speaker 1>and more difficult. Have you found that to be the case?

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<v Speaker 1>Is the American regulatory scheme more likable to your top

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<v Speaker 1>people than what you have in Europe?

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<v Speaker 2>So my view on regulation is we should turn it

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<v Speaker 2>into a competitive advantage. Banking is all about trust. Highly

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<v Speaker 2>regulated entities at the end do have a lot of safeguards.

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<v Speaker 2>And so At the end, Europe has a lot to

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<v Speaker 2>do in terms of being more competitive. Smarter regulation is

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<v Speaker 2>a key goal for us in Europe. The US is ahead.

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<v Speaker 2>The UK is ahead. But I believe Europe is catching up.

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<v Speaker 1>Now, when interest rates go up, is it better for

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<v Speaker 1>banks because they can charge more, but they have to

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<v Speaker 1>give more from deposits? So the ECB not long ago

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<v Speaker 1>increased interest rates. Is that a good thing for European

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<v Speaker 1>banks or banks like yours?

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<v Speaker 2>So the answer is it depends on the type of business.

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<v Speaker 2>This is one of Santander's great strengths that people overlook.

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<v Speaker 2>It's not that the geographic diversification, it's the business diversification.

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<v Speaker 2>So on the retail and commercial side, it's an advantage,

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<v Speaker 2>slightly higher rates, as long as they don't go too high,

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<v Speaker 2>so then bad loans increase. So we're at the sweet spot.

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<v Speaker 2>It's like loan loss is very low, employment is high,

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<v Speaker 2>so slightly higher rates is good for our retail commercial.

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<v Speaker 2>It's not as good for our consumer lender, which is

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<v Speaker 2>open bank. Net-net, it's a positive. Why? Because retail commercial

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<v Speaker 2>within retail, that's bigger than the pure consumer lender.

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<v Speaker 1>The biggest challenge for the banking community in Europe and

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<v Speaker 1>the United States now, is it inflation or is it

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<v Speaker 1>the uncertainty of artificial intelligence?

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<v Speaker 2>The biggest uncertainty right now is the lack of growth

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<v Speaker 2>or lack of enough growth. We need to accelerate growth

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<v Speaker 2>because of all the challenges we have to finance pensions,

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<v Speaker 2>to finance the energy transition, to finance the fence. So

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<v Speaker 2>we need faster growth, not least because of the high

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<v Speaker 2>level of government debt. So I think that's the biggest

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<v Speaker 2>challenge the world faces.

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<v Speaker 1>Speaking of government debt, in the United States, we've got $ 34,

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<v Speaker 1>$ 35 trillion of debt not counting the unfunded Social Security,

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<v Speaker 1>Medicare obligations. Europe has a fair amount of debt as well.

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<v Speaker 1>Do you worry that the debt burden in the United

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<v Speaker 1>States may really hurt the U.S. economy in the foreseeable future?

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<v Speaker 1>Or do you think it can be managed?

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<v Speaker 2>That is only a problem if you don't grow enough.

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<v Speaker 2>And so the U.S. traditionally has been able to go

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<v Speaker 2>from having a lot of debt to much less because

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<v Speaker 2>it can grow fast enough to actually pay for that debt.

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<v Speaker 2>So by the way, the level of taxes overall in

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<v Speaker 2>the US is very much lower than in Europe. So

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<v Speaker 2>I think there's a lot of levers the US has

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<v Speaker 2>to tackle the debt, which is higher than in Europe,

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<v Speaker 2>by the way. Europe, if you take Germany, which is

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<v Speaker 2>obviously part of Europe, has a much lower debt, but

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<v Speaker 2>much lower growth.

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<v Speaker 1>Now, the United States has gotten itself in the middle

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<v Speaker 1>of a war in Iran. And it seems to be,

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<v Speaker 1>as we talked today, still going on. Has that had

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<v Speaker 1>any impact on your bank yet, or on the economy

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<v Speaker 1>in Europe, or in your view on the economy in

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<v Speaker 1>the United States? Has it fueled inflation, or has it

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<v Speaker 1>not yet been seen?

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<v Speaker 2>So, as far as our bank is concerned, we reiterated

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<v Speaker 2>all our targets after Q1, so we will deliver the

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<v Speaker 2>numbers that we predicted for the year. So, Energy, inflation

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<v Speaker 2>obviously impact our business, but because of the diversification on

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<v Speaker 2>a net basis, it will be the same. This is

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<v Speaker 2>one of the great strengths of Santander. Again, business and

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<v Speaker 2>geographic diversification. We do believe that inflation will tend to

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<v Speaker 2>come down if the conflict ends soon. So that is

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<v Speaker 2>the tendency we're seeing for next year.

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<v Speaker 1>Now, based on your knowledge of what's likely to happen

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<v Speaker 1>in the U.S. economy or what you've seen so far,

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<v Speaker 1>what do you think the U.S. economy will be doing

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<v Speaker 1>in the next quarter or two quarters or three quarters?

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<v Speaker 1>And what do you think about Europe? Are you optimistic

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<v Speaker 1>or are you nervous about the economic growth in these areas?

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<v Speaker 2>If I had to summarize in one sentence what's going

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<v Speaker 2>on on both sides of the Atlantic, I would say

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<v Speaker 2>it's remarkable resilience. So both the U.S. and Europe are

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<v Speaker 2>growing very with relatively low inflation, very low unemployment, in

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<v Speaker 2>a context of very high geopolitical uncertainty. So I do

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<v Speaker 2>think remarkable resilience, the consumer is suffering at the bottom end,

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<v Speaker 2>but actually overall doing pretty good, and investment is picking up.

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<v Speaker 2>So as long as the geopolitical situation comes down a bit,

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<v Speaker 2>I think next year will be better than this year.

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<v Speaker 1>So if you're the executive chair of a bank that's

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<v Speaker 1>based in Spain, but it's all over Europe, and it's

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<v Speaker 1>the United States and Latin America. How much of your

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<v Speaker 1>time is on an airplane?

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<v Speaker 2>A lot.

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<v Speaker 1>And how do you avoid jet lag?

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<v Speaker 2>Oh, my God. I measure everything in life. So, you know,

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<v Speaker 2>I measure, and like a good banker, I measure it twice.

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<v Speaker 2>So I have URA and I have Fitbit. For the five,

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<v Speaker 2>six years, I've measured what makes me sleep better, what

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<v Speaker 2>happens when I have jet lag, how sports affects me.

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<v Speaker 2>And so I try to improve by measuring and getting

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<v Speaker 2>better at what helps me have more energy. It's essential,

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<v Speaker 2>taking care of yourself.

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<v Speaker 1>Now, where were you born?

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<v Speaker 2>I was born in Santander. I lived in Santander until

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<v Speaker 2>I was 13 years old. And then for the next

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<v Speaker 2>20 years, I lived in six or seven different countries.

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<v Speaker 2>I went to university in the United States, but I

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<v Speaker 2>lived in the UK. I went to school. I went

0:12:33.990 --> 0:12:35.869
<v Speaker 2>to Austria. I went to France. So I lived in

0:12:35.929 --> 0:12:36.710
<v Speaker 2>many different places.

0:12:37.140 --> 0:12:39.000
<v Speaker 1>And your undergraduate degree is from Bryn Mawr?

0:12:39.360 --> 0:12:40.079
<v Speaker 2>It's from Bryn Mawr.

0:12:40.620 --> 0:12:42.100
<v Speaker 1>And did you think when you were at Bryn Mawr

0:12:42.140 --> 0:12:44.180
<v Speaker 1>that you would ever be running a major bank?

0:12:44.400 --> 0:12:44.640
<v Speaker 2>Never.

0:12:45.080 --> 0:12:46.920
<v Speaker 1>But did you have interest in finance then, or did

0:12:46.940 --> 0:12:49.130
<v Speaker 1>your father say you will like it eventually?

0:12:49.370 --> 0:12:53.290
<v Speaker 2>My father never said anything to me. I joined J.P. Morgan.

0:12:53.330 --> 0:12:55.730
<v Speaker 2>I was in J.P. Morgan for eight years just because

0:12:55.770 --> 0:12:58.790
<v Speaker 2>they came to recruit. Even though my degree is from

0:12:58.830 --> 0:13:01.290
<v Speaker 2>Bryn Mawr, actually my last year was at Harvard. So

0:13:01.350 --> 0:13:04.810
<v Speaker 2>I was recruited into JP Morgan, and I was there

0:13:04.830 --> 0:13:07.250
<v Speaker 2>for eight years. Then I came back to Spain and

0:13:07.309 --> 0:13:08.670
<v Speaker 2>started working for Santander.

0:13:09.410 --> 0:13:13.150
<v Speaker 1>And it wasn't preordained that you would become the executive chair,

0:13:13.210 --> 0:13:13.790
<v Speaker 1>I guess, right?

0:13:14.170 --> 0:13:15.030
<v Speaker 2>No, it was not.

0:13:15.610 --> 0:13:17.809
<v Speaker 1>Now, there is a woman who's the head of the ECB,

0:13:18.090 --> 0:13:21.090
<v Speaker 1>Christine Lagarde, in Europe. And was that a job you

0:13:21.110 --> 0:13:24.250
<v Speaker 1>would ever aspire to have? No. Not interested in public

0:13:24.320 --> 0:13:26.719
<v Speaker 1>service in that way, or just you like being executive

0:13:26.740 --> 0:13:28.440
<v Speaker 1>chairman of the Banco Santander?

0:13:28.760 --> 0:13:31.189
<v Speaker 2>Well, first, I love my job. At the end, if

0:13:31.210 --> 0:13:33.870
<v Speaker 2>you go into public service, at least if I were

0:13:33.910 --> 0:13:36.670
<v Speaker 2>to consider doing that, it would be because I can

0:13:36.710 --> 0:13:39.380
<v Speaker 2>have an impact. That's really what motivates me, having a

0:13:39.390 --> 0:13:44.979
<v Speaker 2>big impact. And with 180 million customers across Europe and

0:13:45.000 --> 0:13:50.040
<v Speaker 2>the Americas, and indirectly impacting over 500 million people, that's

0:13:50.100 --> 0:13:52.540
<v Speaker 2>a population of the United States. If you take companies

0:13:52.640 --> 0:13:55.640
<v Speaker 2>and people that work for those companies, I can have

0:13:55.679 --> 0:13:57.680
<v Speaker 2>a much bigger impact where I am.

0:13:58.320 --> 0:14:00.990
<v Speaker 1>What do you do when you're not banking. You are

0:14:01.370 --> 0:14:03.730
<v Speaker 1>running this large bank. You're the executive chairman of it,

0:14:04.150 --> 0:14:05.600
<v Speaker 1>but do you have any outside interest?

0:14:05.840 --> 0:14:07.920
<v Speaker 2>My biggest interest is my family. I spend a lot

0:14:07.960 --> 0:14:10.160
<v Speaker 2>of time with my family. I think that is what

0:14:10.200 --> 0:14:12.740
<v Speaker 2>gives me balance. I have a great partner in my husband.

0:14:12.780 --> 0:14:18.160
<v Speaker 2>He's helped me 50-50 with raising our sons. I love

0:14:18.179 --> 0:14:22.030
<v Speaker 2>playing golf. I love hiking. I love nature. I like music.

0:14:22.830 --> 0:14:25.810
<v Speaker 2>I still play the piano. My mother founded a very

0:14:25.890 --> 0:14:29.000
<v Speaker 2>prestigious globally recognized music school.

0:14:29.260 --> 0:14:31.400
<v Speaker 1>What's the great pleasure of the job you have now?

0:14:31.680 --> 0:14:34.750
<v Speaker 1>What's fun about being the executive chairman of Banco Santander?

0:14:35.260 --> 0:14:38.330
<v Speaker 2>So I was lucky to be outside banking for three years.

0:14:38.450 --> 0:14:41.850
<v Speaker 2>I started a private equity fund. I was literally, in

0:14:41.890 --> 0:14:44.830
<v Speaker 2>a nice way, asked to leave by my father after

0:14:44.870 --> 0:14:47.010
<v Speaker 2>it was this big merger in Spain because I was

0:14:47.570 --> 0:14:50.550
<v Speaker 2>apparently a threat to the new CEO. It's a long story.

0:14:50.990 --> 0:14:54.710
<v Speaker 2>So I set up a tech company. I set up

0:14:54.770 --> 0:14:58.760
<v Speaker 2>a private equity fund and two foundations. And I found

0:14:59.080 --> 0:15:01.380
<v Speaker 2>that being on the other side of the table from

0:15:01.450 --> 0:15:03.490
<v Speaker 2>a bank was actually pretty hard if you were a

0:15:03.510 --> 0:15:07.150
<v Speaker 2>small business. So my passion is visiting small customers and

0:15:07.210 --> 0:15:11.190
<v Speaker 2>helping them. It's amazing, like just a few days ago,

0:15:12.150 --> 0:15:15.170
<v Speaker 2>my makeup artist tells me, I've been trying to buy

0:15:15.190 --> 0:15:17.790
<v Speaker 2>a home. Every single bank in Spain has said they

0:15:17.820 --> 0:15:21.760
<v Speaker 2>cannot give me a mortgage. And being able to understand

0:15:21.820 --> 0:15:25.510
<v Speaker 2>what that person needs and you know, getting your company

0:15:25.570 --> 0:15:28.460
<v Speaker 2>to not just fix it for him, but potentially for

0:15:28.500 --> 0:15:31.910
<v Speaker 2>thousands of others, that is the best thing in the world.

0:15:32.250 --> 0:15:35.660
<v Speaker 2>And so, you know, I love seeing big customers, but

0:15:35.700 --> 0:15:39.940
<v Speaker 2>I love helping, you know, entrepreneurs, the self-employed or small

0:15:39.980 --> 0:15:45.040
<v Speaker 2>companies get financing and be able to do what they

0:15:45.060 --> 0:15:45.780
<v Speaker 2>need to do in life.

0:15:45.940 --> 0:15:48.540
<v Speaker 1>Not long ago, I interviewed somebody who started a fintech

0:15:48.600 --> 0:15:51.940
<v Speaker 1>company in Europe called Revolut. And it seems to be

0:15:51.960 --> 0:15:55.700
<v Speaker 1>doing quite well. Do you worry about companies like Revolut

0:15:56.120 --> 0:15:59.360
<v Speaker 1>as kind of taking away some of your core business,

0:15:59.680 --> 0:16:01.020
<v Speaker 1>or do you think you can do the same thing

0:16:01.040 --> 0:16:01.500
<v Speaker 1>they're doing?

0:16:01.840 --> 0:16:04.370
<v Speaker 2>They're definitely one of the better, if not the best,

0:16:05.040 --> 0:16:09.010
<v Speaker 2>fintech company in the world. My job is to, and

0:16:09.070 --> 0:16:12.030
<v Speaker 2>I will, and we will as a team, build a

0:16:12.070 --> 0:16:15.730
<v Speaker 2>better product pretty soon so that you can instantly pay

0:16:16.270 --> 0:16:20.360
<v Speaker 2>across all our footprint and beyond in three seconds, make

0:16:20.420 --> 0:16:21.420
<v Speaker 2>payments cross-border.

0:16:21.940 --> 0:16:23.980
<v Speaker 1>As you look at what you're doing, what are you

0:16:24.040 --> 0:16:26.250
<v Speaker 1>most proud of what you've achieved so far?

0:16:26.920 --> 0:16:30.010
<v Speaker 2>So I'm most proud of having been able to deliver

0:16:30.050 --> 0:16:34.890
<v Speaker 2>the numbers the right way, which I describe as not

0:16:34.930 --> 0:16:37.850
<v Speaker 2>just delivering this quarter, but investing for the future. A

0:16:37.970 --> 0:16:40.750
<v Speaker 2>big thing right now is one transformation. It's how do

0:16:40.790 --> 0:16:43.740
<v Speaker 2>you take a group of banks and convert them into

0:16:43.780 --> 0:16:48.310
<v Speaker 2>a truly global institution. So one transformation is all about

0:16:48.350 --> 0:16:51.530
<v Speaker 2>changing the business model and global platforms. So open bank,

0:16:51.810 --> 0:16:55.390
<v Speaker 2>it's our front end. It's our revolute. Gravity is our

0:16:55.470 --> 0:16:58.590
<v Speaker 2>core system. So really building platforms that are going to

0:16:58.610 --> 0:17:00.730
<v Speaker 2>be able to deliver in a much better way.

0:17:01.230 --> 0:17:03.190
<v Speaker 1>So in the future, do you think that there will

0:17:03.230 --> 0:17:06.750
<v Speaker 1>be physical banks where people go and put their money

0:17:06.869 --> 0:17:10.290
<v Speaker 1>in and borrow money and actually talk to tellers? Or

0:17:10.320 --> 0:17:11.800
<v Speaker 1>is that going to be a thing of the past

0:17:11.880 --> 0:17:12.730
<v Speaker 1>in five or 10 years?

0:17:13.359 --> 0:17:16.470
<v Speaker 2>I believe in the personal relationship. I believe in the experience,

0:17:16.530 --> 0:17:18.850
<v Speaker 2>and that's what we're building. So I truly believe it's

0:17:18.930 --> 0:17:24.149
<v Speaker 2>people talking to people, but leveraging a very strong digital offering.

0:17:24.210 --> 0:17:26.310
<v Speaker 2>So we're only as good as we are on our iPhones,

0:17:26.730 --> 0:17:30.560
<v Speaker 2>but we also need people in branches with an experience.

0:17:30.720 --> 0:17:33.440
<v Speaker 2>Being the bridge between Europe and the Americas is huge.

0:17:33.780 --> 0:17:36.639
<v Speaker 2>There's nobody else like Santander that can do that. You

0:17:36.660 --> 0:17:39.100
<v Speaker 2>know who's the biggest trading partner for the United States?

0:17:39.600 --> 0:17:43.340
<v Speaker 2>European Union. Do you know that Mexico is the third

0:17:43.390 --> 0:17:47.320
<v Speaker 2>largest trading partner, the UK the sixth largest? So we're

0:17:47.540 --> 0:17:52.460
<v Speaker 2>unique to connect all these companies. And what's really important,

0:17:52.560 --> 0:17:56.580
<v Speaker 2>in today's economy, there's a huge number of self-employed, and

0:17:56.600 --> 0:18:00.440
<v Speaker 2>they want to go global. Even one single person with

0:18:00.500 --> 0:18:03.359
<v Speaker 2>AI can do amazing things. Sometimes that is the best

0:18:03.560 --> 0:18:07.320
<v Speaker 2>way to connect with many countries. Again, Europe and America

0:18:07.359 --> 0:18:08.320
<v Speaker 2>is instantly.

0:18:08.910 --> 0:18:12.370
<v Speaker 1>Now, there's a concern in the AI world that AI

0:18:13.869 --> 0:18:17.320
<v Speaker 1>will produce a lot of job losses for people. In

0:18:17.359 --> 0:18:21.220
<v Speaker 1>Banco Santander, are you worried that job losses will occur,

0:18:21.300 --> 0:18:23.500
<v Speaker 1>or do you think it will actually produce more jobs

0:18:23.580 --> 0:18:24.140
<v Speaker 1>for the bank?

0:18:24.859 --> 0:18:28.000
<v Speaker 2>Well, if you look at the numbers across all our co-markets,

0:18:28.040 --> 0:18:32.060
<v Speaker 2>we're at historically high employment levels. There's definitely a change,

0:18:32.220 --> 0:18:34.380
<v Speaker 2>so the jobs will be different. There could be some

0:18:34.420 --> 0:18:37.320
<v Speaker 2>adjustment as we go through this, but we're not seeing

0:18:37.380 --> 0:18:41.260
<v Speaker 2>right now any big impact in terms of employment. Now,

0:18:41.420 --> 0:18:43.859
<v Speaker 2>it might happen, for sure will happen at some point.

0:18:44.160 --> 0:18:47.950
<v Speaker 1>AI seems to be dominated now by American technology companies.

0:18:48.130 --> 0:18:50.690
<v Speaker 1>Do you think Europe is falling behind in the AI race?

0:18:51.390 --> 0:18:54.310
<v Speaker 2>We're working with all the LLMs. We're working on what

0:18:54.350 --> 0:18:57.350
<v Speaker 2>we call an orchestration layer, and there's many things that

0:18:57.369 --> 0:19:00.350
<v Speaker 2>we can build. you can build very efficient vertical models.

0:19:00.390 --> 0:19:04.010
<v Speaker 2>You don't need the most advanced models for some task.

0:19:04.290 --> 0:19:06.100
<v Speaker 2>And so what we do is we have our own

0:19:06.170 --> 0:19:08.950
<v Speaker 2>teams and all of that is embedded in the businesses

0:19:09.390 --> 0:19:11.740
<v Speaker 2>where we work with the large companies and then we

0:19:11.780 --> 0:19:15.180
<v Speaker 2>decide which one we use. But very importantly, we're building

0:19:15.260 --> 0:19:18.540
<v Speaker 2>our own agents. We have 280 AI agents up and

0:19:18.580 --> 0:19:22.200
<v Speaker 2>running inside Santander. And we do that within a very

0:19:22.240 --> 0:19:24.960
<v Speaker 2>secure perimeter to make sure that we do that safely.

0:19:25.320 --> 0:19:27.580
<v Speaker 2>That is what you get with a highly regulated bank. So-

0:19:28.670 --> 0:19:31.930
<v Speaker 2>We think there's a huge opportunity for a bank like ours.

0:19:32.130 --> 0:19:34.899
<v Speaker 1>So you're a role model for executives in the banking

0:19:34.940 --> 0:19:38.440
<v Speaker 1>world because you are heading up a major bank. So

0:19:38.480 --> 0:19:40.340
<v Speaker 1>what does it take to be a global banker?

0:19:40.680 --> 0:19:43.380
<v Speaker 2>It's all about the team. So having the team that

0:19:43.460 --> 0:19:45.510
<v Speaker 2>is going to get you where you want and be

0:19:45.570 --> 0:19:48.890
<v Speaker 2>great at their jobs and work well together is the key.

0:19:49.270 --> 0:19:51.129
<v Speaker 2>And for that, you need to have a vision. You

0:19:51.170 --> 0:19:53.350
<v Speaker 2>need to tell them where it is you're going. You

0:19:53.369 --> 0:19:55.690
<v Speaker 2>also have to be good at attracting. I've always said

0:19:55.770 --> 0:19:58.690
<v Speaker 2>people that at what they do are better than you,

0:19:58.930 --> 0:20:01.470
<v Speaker 2>better than I am. And that is absolutely essential.

0:20:02.020 --> 0:20:04.280
<v Speaker 1>So if you were a young person coming out of

0:20:04.380 --> 0:20:07.320
<v Speaker 1>college or graduate school today, why should you want to

0:20:07.359 --> 0:20:09.639
<v Speaker 1>work in a large commercial bank? Why not go work

0:20:10.040 --> 0:20:13.070
<v Speaker 1>in private equity or hedge funds. Isn't it more lucrative

0:20:13.090 --> 0:20:15.050
<v Speaker 1>to do that? And why should somebody want to come

0:20:15.090 --> 0:20:16.150
<v Speaker 1>work at a bank like yours?

0:20:17.010 --> 0:20:19.710
<v Speaker 2>Because what we do matters, because we have a purpose,

0:20:20.010 --> 0:20:23.209
<v Speaker 2>which is to help people, businesses prosper. We've done that

0:20:23.230 --> 0:20:27.060
<v Speaker 2>for 170 years. And in the AI age, we have

0:20:27.080 --> 0:20:31.060
<v Speaker 2>a huge advantage. For the first time in years, because

0:20:31.119 --> 0:20:33.119
<v Speaker 2>of the amount of data we have, because of the

0:20:33.380 --> 0:20:36.940
<v Speaker 2>AI tools that we are putting in place, we can

0:20:37.000 --> 0:20:40.230
<v Speaker 2>actually use that data in a much better way. And

0:20:40.250 --> 0:20:42.330
<v Speaker 2>this is what I call squaring the circle. We can

0:20:42.450 --> 0:20:47.149
<v Speaker 2>personalize every single one of our products for 180 million

0:20:47.210 --> 0:20:51.550
<v Speaker 2>customers and do that profitably. The possibilities of AI mean

0:20:51.590 --> 0:20:54.550
<v Speaker 2>that we are attracting top talent, not just from Europe,

0:20:54.590 --> 0:20:57.230
<v Speaker 2>from the United States, coming to work for us at Santander.

0:20:57.770 --> 0:21:00.750
<v Speaker 2>So I'm very excited about what this means for us

0:21:01.010 --> 0:21:02.350
<v Speaker 2>and for the potential of the bank.

0:21:04.109 --> 0:21:06.600
<v Speaker 1>Thanks for listening. To hear more of my interviews, you

0:21:06.640 --> 0:21:10.810
<v Speaker 1>can subscribe and download my podcast on Spotify, Apple, or

0:21:10.830 --> 0:21:11.540
<v Speaker 1>wherever you listen.