Santander is reportedly planning to axe more than 1,400 UK jobs in a bid to cut costs.

During a press conference attended by UK media, the bank’s chief executive Hector Grisi said that the move forms part of plans to automate more of its operations.

The news comes as Santander delays publication of its third quarter results announcement, which was due to take place on Tuesday, as the Spanish Bank assesses a court ruling on motor finance commissions.

Most of the planned redundancies have already been made, with the rest expected to complete by the end of the year.

In April, Santander revealed plans to exit the mortgage business in Germany and cut around 500 jobs in the country by 2026.

At the time the bank said it wanted to refocus its business on more profitable activities.

Despite recent stabilisation high interest rate rises have led Germany to undergo its worst downturn in home buying in decades, with mortgage lending slowing sharply as a result.

Last week, Santander announced it was expanding its US presence with the launch of its digital banking platform Openbank in the United States, marking its first nationwide retail banking offering beyond its northeastern branch network.

The digital bank will operate on Santander's proprietary technology platform, allowing customers to open accounts through the Openbank mobile app or website in as little as five minutes.

Additional banking products are planned for rollout throughout 2025.

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