Banco Santander SA

BCBA:STD

Record half: Santander said Q2 was another record quarter, with quarterly profit of EUR 3.8 billion and H1 '26 the best half ever, helped by strong revenue growth and a larger customer base of 182 million.

Guidance intact: Management said the group remains on track to deliver more than EUR 14.1 billion of profit in 2026, excluding M&A, and reiterated confidence in its longer-term targets.

TSB impact: TSB was consolidated for only two months, but management said the acquisition is progressing to plan and should bring at least EUR 400 million of synergies, with roughly EUR 250 million of remaining restructuring charges still to come.

Strong core trends: Revenue rose 6%, NII rose 6%, fees rose 7%, and costs fell, driving a 3 percentage point improvement in efficiency and underlying RoTE of 15.6%.

Credit watch: Loan-loss provisions were hurt by Argentina and some single-name cases, but management said excluding Argentina credit quality was broadly stable and they do not see underlying portfolio deterioration.

Capital strength: CET1 ended at 14% even after the TSB impact, and the bank received ECB approval for a new buyback of up to EUR 1.8 billion against '26 results.

Positive outlook: Management said Spain, Mexico, Brazil, the U.K. and the U.S. all showed strong strategic momentum, with ONE Transformation, deposits and cross-selling continuing to improve profitability.