Santander UK today announced the appointment of Andrew Wilson as Director of Corporate Communications and Responsible Banking and member of the Executive Committee of Santander UK.
Andrew will join the bank in March and will be responsible for providing strategic leadership and advice across all of Santander’s corporate communications activities as well as leading the development of the bank’s sustainability and education programmes.
He brings with him varied experience from a career as an economist, politician and communications adviser to a range of businesses, charities and other organisations. He joins Santander from the strategic communications consultancy, Charlotte Street Partners where he was founding partner. Previous roles include deputy chief economist and head of group communications at RBS and member of the Scottish Parliament.
Andrew has a wide range of interests and currently sits on the boards at Motherwell Football Club, National Galleries of Scotland and Sistema Scotland.
Santander UK CEO, Mike Regnier said: “Andrew has a unique combination of experience that will be a huge asset right across the bank. He is joining us at a very interesting time in the wider political and economic landscape and his perspective will help us shape the way in which we continue to support our customers at this time and into the future. I am looking forward to working with him.”
Andrew Wilson said: “We have seen through the pandemic and the current economic environment the crucial role Santander UK plays in supporting customers and businesses. Ensuring that we are communicating effectively both to them and our own people about the help available has never been more important.
“But it is also clear that customers want to understand and be reassured that we are a sustainable and responsible business in the decisions we make and priorities we have, whether it is about retrofitting homes or tackling financial inclusion in our communities. These are challenges all financial institutions must address and I am looking forward immensely to helping Santander UK do this.
"Everyone I have met during the recruitment process has given me the confidence that Santander UK has the leadership, people and culture it needs to deliver its strategy well.”
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Andrew Wilson - career history
Andrew began his career in the civil service, before working as a researcher and economist for the SNP and as a business economist at the Royal Bank of Scotland. He was elected as a member of the first Scottish parliament in 1999, serving as shadow minister for, variously: finance, economy, transport and lifelong learning. In 2003, Andrew re-joined RBS, working in a number of roles including as deputy chief economist and served as head of group communications, involved in the bank’s engagement with the City, UK government and the media. In 2012, he joined global marcomms group WPP in a client strategy role, before co-founding Charlotte Street Partners in 2014. Andrew is a board member and trustee of the National Galleries of Scotland, The John Smith Centre for Public Service at the University of Glasgow, the Edinburgh International Culture Summit, Sistema Scotland and Motherwell Football Club. In March 2020, he was elected a fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. In September 2016, he was appointed chair of the Sustainable Growth Commission, which reported to Scotland’s first minister in May 2018. He was also a member of the Independent Commission on Referendums, based at UCL’s Constitution Unit, reporting in July 2018. He has been a regular contributor to the media on economics, business, and current affairs.
Santander UK is a financial services provider in the UK that offers a wide range of personal and commercial financial products and services. At 30 June 2022, the bank had around 18,000 employees and serves around 14 million active customers, via a nationwide branch network, telephone, mobile and online banking. Santander UK is subject to the full supervision of the FCA and the PRA in the UK. Santander UK plc customers’ eligible deposits are protected by the FSCS in the UK.
Banco Santander (SAN SM, STD US, BNC LN) is a leading commercial bank, founded in 1857 and headquartered in Spain. It has a meaningful presence in 10 core markets in the Europe, North America and South America regions, and is one of the largest banks in the world by market capitalization. Santander aims to be the best open financial services platform providing services to individuals, SMEs, corporates, financial institutions and governments. The bank’s purpose is to help people and businesses prosper in a simple, personal and fair way. Santander is building a more responsible bank and has made a number of commitments to support this objective, including raising €220 billion in green financing between 2019 and 2030. At the end of 2022, Banco Santander had €1.3 trillion in total funds, 160 million customers, 9,000 branches and 206,000 employees.
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