Santander seeks growth alternatives after rejection to buy Banamex

The bank hopes to advance in 2023 with the implementation of open banking or open banking that will allow them to provide more products to customers.

The executive said that the offer rejected by Citigroup for Banamex gives them the opportunity to grow organically. “The (growth) strategy does not depend on making acquisitions,” he said.

One of the bank’s strong commitments to compete with fintechs and reach a young audience is by launching LikeU cards, which represent 12% of plastic placement, since most of its customers are under 30 years of age.

When questioned about the offer he presented to acquire Banamex and the possible influence of comments by President López Obrador that he hoped no workers would be fired, Mena ruled out that the president’s wishes influenced the purchase process.

“Since the beginning of the (sale) process, the government and the president have sent messages about how they would like the process to happen. Obviously it is important to consider them, but it was not a restriction so that we could make an offer. It is a transaction between private parties,” he added. .

Real Credit Case

After it became known that Crédito Real plans to file for Chapter 15 of the United States Bankruptcy Law, Santander initiated an injunction against him to secure bank accounts and trust rights.

Didier Mena said that the bank’s exposure to Crédito Real represents 10 percentage points of its portfolio (less than 0.1%) and that reserves or provisions have been made close to 80% of the total exposure they require.