Banco Santander Totta
Using its low cost/income ratio, the lowest in the country, Banco Santander Totta has been able to market competitive products in targeted segments.
This strategy has enabled it to grow in areas such as mortgage lending, investment funds, life insurance and credit cards, gaining significant market shares. Its profitability is also good, and the increasing efficiency of it operations, associated with a low non-performing new loans ratio, has led to an increase in RoE.
The branch network has been expanded, with 46 branches opened in 2005 and others planned for the end of the year.
“Over the past few years, Santander Totta’s team has been able to build a strong competitive advantage, resulting from combining the best cost/income [ratio] of Portuguese banks with the constant launching of innovative products, which allowed us to gain market share in a sustainable way,” says António Horta Osório, CEO of Santander Totta until August. “This performance is also reflected in the net income growth and RoE, both consistently above 20%, and in the fact that it has achieved the best rating of Portuguese banks (AA).”
