Leadership and Integration
Upon closing, Christiana Riley will continue as Santander’s U.S. country head and CEO of Santander Holdings USA (SHUSA). Webster CEO John Ciulla will become CEO of Santander Bank NA (SBNA), the entity into which Webster’s businesses will be integrated.
Luis Massiani, Webster’s president and chief operating officer, will serve as COO of both SHUSA and SBNA, overseeing integration efforts and reporting to Riley and Ciulla.
Both Ciulla and Massiani will remain based at Webster’s Stamford headquarters, which will serve as a core corporate office alongside Santander’s offices in Boston, New York, Miami and Dallas. Tim Ryan will continue as chair of the SHUSA board.
Integration teams from both banks will guide the transition, focusing on service continuity, employee engagement and timely realization of synergies.
Strategic Rationale and Financial Impact
Over the past five years, Santander said its U.S. operations have been among the group’s strongest value creators, with average annual profit after tax growth of 31% over the past three years and all Investor Day targets achieved.
Following completion, the combined U.S. balance sheet will total approximately $327 billion in assets, including $185 billion in loans and $172 billion in deposits as of Dec. 31, 2025.
The transaction is expected to:
