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Santander to buy Webst Financial for $12.2 billion

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Offers 2.0548 of its shares, $48.75 in cash for each

Webster

share

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Aims to create top-10 retail bank in U.S. by assets

By Jesús Aguado and Arasu Kannagi Basil

MADRID/BANGLORE, Feb 3 (Reuters) -

Santander ‌will buy U.S. regional lender Webster

Financial ( WBS ) in a $12.2 billion deal to create a top-10

retail ​and commercial bank in the U.S. by assets, the Spanish

bank said ‍on Tuesday.

Santander first entered the U.S. market in ⁠2005 when it

bought ⁠Sovereign Bank and is currently one of the biggest

lenders in its auto lending business.

It expanded ‌into corporate and investment banking in ​2023

after hiring more than a hundred staff from collapsed lender

Credit Suisse.

"This transaction is strategically significant for our U.S.

business, ⁠while remaining a bolt-on for the ‍overall ​group,"

Santander Chairman Ana Botin said in a statement.

Botin said the acquisition would allow the bank to

strengthen scale and profitability, improving the ‍bank's funding

mix and economics, including lower funding costs.

Santander has offered 2.0548 of its shares and $48.75 in

cash for each Webster share. The deal is expected to close in

the second half of 2026.

Centerview Partners, Goldman Sachs and Bank of America

advised Santander on the deal.

The acquisition will ​put ‍the bank on track to deliver a

return-on-equity ratio of about 18% in the U.S. by 2028, among

the top five for ​profitability within the 25 largest U.S.

commercial banks, with a target of more than 20% by 2028 at

group level.

On Tuesday, Santander also announced a rise of 12% in its

2025 net profit to 14.1 billion euros, above forecasts of 13.77

billion euros.

"Importantly, we can achieve this while maintaining all of

our shareholder remuneration ​commitments, including the 5

billion share buyback we approved today and our broader

distribution commitments," Botin said in a statement.