Annual Report 2007 - Santander

MEANS OF PAYMENTGLOBAL BUSINESSESSANTANDER CARDS GROSSOPERATING INCOME ROSE 41%TO EUR 2,129 MILLIONCorporate model debit cardSantander Cards aims to be the best payment specialistintegrated into a global retail bankSantander Cardsexploits its global areaposition to generateeconomies of scaleand transmit bestpractices amongcountries, reducingthe time needed tolaunch products andcutting costsSantander Cards is the Group’s Divisioncovering all businesses related to means ofpayment, both issuance of cards (debit andcredit) as well as the supplier of points-of-saleservices to shops, with the exceptions ofBanesto and Santander Consumer Finance.Santander Cards manages 48.2 million cards(out of a total of 60.4 million for the wholeGroup) in 11 countries.In order to attain the maximum valuefrom its business, Santander Cards’management model is structured in varioussegments, combining in each one thebusiness and risk perspectives.The initial objective is for customers toacquire cards and activate them. Once this isdone, the focus is on maximising their useand financing balances, thereby achievinggreater customer linkage and loyalty. Lastly,Santander Cards minimises the number ofcancellations via retention units.The corporate technology model fostersbusiness management and producesoptimum risk management. Santander Cardsexploits its global area position to generateeconomies of scale and transmit bestpractices among the different countries. Thisreduces the time needed to launch productsand reduces costs.In private cards, the Bank has manyshared brand programmes with bigcompanies that entrust it with themanagement of these cards. For example, inSpain’s case, there are more than 200 privatecard programmes with companies fromvarious sectors.ACHIEVEMENTS IN 2007• In Spain, net interest income rose68.5%, driven by the strong rise ofthe financed portfolio.• Credit card business re-launched inthe UK, directly operated by Abbey.• High growth in Latin America,particularly Brazil (significant gain inmarket share following the success ofthe Light and Free cards).GOALS FOR 2008• Revenue growth of around 25-30%.• Strengthen the leadership position inMexico and Chile.• Strengthen and promote business inthe UK, Spain and Brazil.SANTANDER CARDS*Lending (million euros) 8,251Gross operating income (million euros) 2,129Credit cards (million) 15.6Debit cards (million) 32.6* Santander Cards perimeter34