Santander has made a commitment not to shut down any more bank branches until 2028, including those of TSB, which it recently acquired for £2.65 billion. Despite this, the Spanish-owned bank has identified 44 branches for closure this year, risking 291 jobs. Once these closures are finalized, there will be 305 Santander and 175 TSB branches remaining in the UK.
This announcement was part of Santander’s latest half-year financial results, which showed a 31% decrease in pre-tax profits to £528 million for the first six months of the year.
Earlier in the year, the bank disclosed that it had allocated an additional £179 million to address costs related to the car finance mis-selling issue, currently facing legal obstacles. Additionally, Santander noted a £173 million increase in bad debt charges due to a gloomier economic forecast in 2026 amid the Iran conflict and post-TSB acquisition.
However, Santander aims to achieve at least £400 million in savings by the end of 2028 by leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) and automation technologies.
Mahesh Aditya, the Chief Executive Officer at Santander UK, expressed the importance of branches in their strategy and emphasized a focus on combining top-notch digital services with personalized customer support. He reassured that no Santander or TSB branches are planned for closure before 2028, highlighting the continuous investment in modernizing their network and introducing new Work Cafés.
Santander recently introduced a new regular saver account offering an 8% interest rate on savings up to £200 per month. The account includes a 5% variable bonus for the first year, after which it reverts to a 3% variable rate. It is open to all Santander current account holders with a minimum balance requirement of £1 and limited to one account per customer.