Santander boasts 13% UK market share

The firm says its purchases of Alliance & Leicester (A&L) and the branch network of Bradford & Bingley (B&B), coupled with the performance of Abbey, which it bought in 2004, helped it rapidly expand its market share. In a statement to the London Stock Exchange, Santander says Abbey is now the second largest bank in terms of mortgages, boasting 1,300 branches and 25 million customers. It adds mortgage activity by Abbey grew 10% over the year, to a balance of £121.5bn, which rises to £159bn when added to mortgages from A&L. Net mortgage production in Abbey amounted to £11.1bn. IFAonline