Regulators have terminated a longstanding enforcement action with Santander.
The Federal Reserve, which regulates bank holding companies, announced the ending of the action yesterday, which had required the company to address deficiencies with its governance, risk management, capital planning and liquidity risk management.
Notably, the enforcement action required the company to get approval from the Federal Reserve before appointing any new director or senior executive officer, or changing the responsibilities of any senior executive officer so that the officer would assume a different senior executive position.
“Today’s announcement is our most significant step yet towards resolving our legacy issues,” Scott Powell, CEO of Santander U.S., said in a statement. “We’ve had a great year in 2018, both in terms of improving profitability and returning to normal operating standards. While we still have work to do, we look forward to building on our momentum as we seek to cement a culture focused on the highest levels of compliance and customer service.”
The enforcement was initially imposed back in 2015 and required the company to submit written plans detailing how it would strengthen board oversight, risk management, capital planning, liquidity risk management and compliance with regulation, among other measures.
The good news comes roughly a year after the Fed ended another previous enforcement action against Santander. That one had required the company to get approval from the agency before paying out dividends to shareholders.