Finance
Santander merges digital bank and consumer finance unit in Europe
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on October 15, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
Global Banking and Finance Review
Company
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on October 15, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
Santander merges Openbank with its consumer finance unit to streamline operations and enhance digital banking in Europe, starting with Germany.
By Jesús Aguado
MADRID (Reuters) -Spain's Santander is merging its digital lender Openbank with its consumer finance business in Europe as part of a drive to simplify its structure and reduce costs, the bank said on Wednesday.
The new entity will manage Santander's consumer finance operations under the Openbank brand, starting with Germany, with other markets to follow, Santander said.
Openbank and Santander Consumer Finance belong to the group's global digital consumer bank business. In Europe, this business has 84 billion euros ($98 billion) in customer deposits.
SCF is an auto finance leader in Europe with over 140 billion euros in loans.
STREAMLINING DIGITAL OPERATIONS
In 2023, Santander reorganised its business into retail, consumer, payments, wealth, and corporate and investment banking units to try to improve efficiency and boost its value.
The euro zone's biggest lender by market value did not disclose potential cost savings from the merger.
Nitin Prabhu, global head of Santander's Digital Consumer Bank global business, said the combination would create a "more efficient and innovative digital-first bank".
Santander, which focuses on 10 core markets, is building its own technology platform for consumer and digital-only banking.
Openbank currently operates in Spain, Germany, Portugal and the Netherlands and has expanded to the U.S. and Mexico.
In recent years, Openbank and SCF have forged partnerships with the likes of Apple, Amazon and Vodafone in various European countries.
Santander said the integration would allow clients to access a wider range of products through a unified digital platform.
($1 = 0.8593 euros)
(Reporting by Jesús Aguado. Editing by Joan Faus and Mark Potter)
Digital banking refers to the digitization of all traditional banking activities, allowing customers to conduct transactions online or via mobile apps without visiting a physical bank.
Consumer finance involves financial products and services designed for individual consumers, including personal loans, credit cards, and mortgages.
A merger in banking occurs when two financial institutions combine to form a single entity, aiming to enhance efficiency, reduce costs, and expand market reach.
Customer deposits are funds that individuals or businesses place in a bank account, which the bank uses to provide loans and earn interest.
A digital lender is a financial institution that provides loans and financial services primarily through online platforms, streamlining the application and approval processes.
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