Santander Names Ignacio Juliá As New Chief Executive For the Spanish Division

Santander, the largest bank in Spain has announced that it has chosen Ignacio Juliá, an ex-Chief Executive Officer of ING for Portugal, and Spain to be the new Chief Executive Officer of its Spanish unit.  Juliá will take over from Ángel Rivera on 1 October 2024 once regulatory approvals are in place.

The bank noted that appointing Juliá will help the firm move forward in changing its business model to give better service to customers, while also growing and becoming more efficient.

Juliá Was Very Important In Making ING Focus On Customers By Using Digital Tools

According to Santander, Juliá was very important in transforming ING from a product-focused bank to one that puts customers first by using digital tools. Juliá has previously served as chief financial and risk officer. In 2016, he took on the role of global chief of retail banking for ING and was also appointed global head of innovation.

The chairman of Banco Santander, Ana Botín gave his opinion regarding the appointment. He stated that the company is happy to welcome Juliá as the new Chief Executive of Santander Spain. Botín noted that Juliá is a young expert with a lot of experience in transforming projects like the one the bank is doing. He further stressed that his skills and knowledge will help the bank speed up the setup of global platforms and help Santander Spain grow faster.

Botín also thanked Ángel Rivera for the role he played in the group and for his guidance in Santander Spain. He noted that under Rivera’s leadership, the bank was able to move forward in building a responsible bank that cares more about customers.

Rivera Will Stay Until The Close Of The Year To Assist With The Transition

In April 2013, Rivera started with the group as distribution manager for Spain’s branch network. He was also in charge of the group’s Commercial Banking division from 2015 to 2017 and was very important in transforming the bank’s operations in Mexico. In 2020, he came back to Santander Spain, and has been serving as the Chief Executive for nearly two years after leading Commercial Banking in Spain.

Rivera, who will stay at the bank until the close of the year to help with the change, is leaving the group to work in other parts of the business world. After over 30 years in the financial industry, he has reached and even gone beyond the goals assigned to him as Chief Executive Officer of Santander Spain. He attracted over one million customers and helped the bank grow steadily and profitably.