Tim Wennes is stepping down as CEO and country lead of Santander US, with Christiana Riley, the group’s current regional head of North America, set to take over the role.Christiana Riley steps up as Santander US CEO (Image: LinkedIn)The leadership change was officially confirmed by Ana Botín, executive chair of Banco Santander, in a LinkedIn post.“Having done an outstanding job in transforming Santander US and laying the foundations for continued growth and success, Tim Wennes has decided that now is the right time to pursue other opportunities,” Botín’s statement reads.Wennes has worked as CEO and country head of Santander US, and president and CEO of Santander Bank NA (SBNA) since 2019, when he moved from MUFG Union Bank (now acquired by U.S. Bank).He has also served on the board of directors of Santander Holdings USA, SBNA, Santander Consumer USA Holdings, Banco Santander International and Santander US Capital Markets.On announcing Riley as his successor, Botín adds that she is “confident she is well-placed to lead the next phase of growth in this critical market”.Riley has overseen all of Santander’s businesses in Mexico and the US since joining the bank back in 2023. Prior to this, she spent 17 years as a member of Deutsche Bank’s management board, and held several leadership positions in both Europe and the Americas.Botín’s post also reveals that Roman Blanco Reinosa is stepping down as CEO and country head of Santander Chile, with Andres Trautmann Buc, the division’s current head of corporate and investment banking (CIB), to rise to the position.These leadership adjustments come as William Vereker announced last week his decision to step down as board chair of Santander UK “during the course of 2025”.
Ven. Feb 7th, 2025
