Santander CEO Hector Grisi announced Tuesday that the Spanish bank will have cut more than 1,400 jobs from its U.K. business by the time its ongoing round of cost-cutting concludes.
Grisi did not give an exact timetable for when the previously announced round of layoffs took place, but said the number of people affected is 1,425.
The layoff plan comes at a time when lenders around the world are turning to electronic banking to better serve customers and amid a competitive landscape in the U.K. mortgage market.
Grisi said that as the process is simplified and automated, more layoffs may follow, without detailing how many more might follow.
A source with knowledge of the process told Reuters on Friday that Santander had largely completed a round of job cuts at its U.K. regional headquarters as part of an efficiency plan, without giving figures.
As of September, Santander UK had 21,812 employees.
On Monday, Santander’s U.K. unit said it postponed the release of its results following a London court ruling last week ordering auto finance brokers to fully inform customers about fees when taking out loans.
However, Santander included the results of its UK unit in the group’s earnings. U.K. profit fell 19% year-on-year in the third quarter, while lending revenue was down 7%.
(Reporting by Jesús Aguado; edited in Spanish by Carlos Serrano)