Company: BCDRF
Filing Date: 2025-02-28
Form Type: 20-F
Source: 0000891478-25-000054
Chunk: 369

Company: Banco Santander, S.A.
Filing Date: 2025-02-28
Form: 20-F
Chunk 369
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 structure to achieve greater agility, increasing our profitability through accelerating the roll out of our global business platforms and products. See section 1.5 'Achievement of our 2024 goals' .

• The relationship between local and global heads of key positions, following a three lines of defence model: Chief Risk Officer (CRO), Chief Compliance Officer (CCO), Chief Audit Executive (CAE), Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Chief Accounting Officer (CAO), as well as other key support and business functions (Technology and Operations (T&O), People and Culture, General Secretariat, Marketing, Communications, Strategy), as well as the five global businesses (CIB, Retail, Wealth, Consumer and Payments).

Internal regulation

The Group has corporate frameworks for matters considered to have a material impact on its risk profile, such as risk, capital, liquidity, compliance, financial crime, technology, auditing, accounting, finance, strategy, people and culture, outsourcing, cybersecurity, special situations management communications and brand and responsible banking. These frameworks, which are mandatory, also specify:

• how the Group should supervise and exert control over its subsidiaries; and

• the Group’s involvement in subsidiaries’ decision-making (and vice versa).

The Banco Santander board approves the GSGM and corporate frameworks for subsidiary governing bodies to formally adhere to them. They consider subsidiaries' local requirements and are revised every year as required by the Group board to adapt to new legislation and international best practices.

The functions draw on corporate frameworks to prepare internal regulatory documents that are given to subsidiaries as a reference for implementing those frameworks effectively, cohesively and in compliance with applicable local laws and supervisory requirements. This approach ensures consistency throughout the

Group. Every year, the functions conduct an assessment to ensure that the Group's internal regulations are embedded locally and carry out an annual certification process to ensure the internal regulation under their scope is fit for purpose.

The Group’s Internal Governance office and subsidiary general counsels are responsible for embedding the GSGM and corporate frameworks. Every year, their performance is assessed in reports sent to the relevant governing bodies.

Since 2019, a policy on the governance of non-GSGM subsidiaries has enhanced the governance and control system that has been applied to those companies.

Global businesses each have specific governance arrangements which ensures a robust Group-wide oversight of such businesses as set out in the GSGM. Each global business is responsible for defining the common business and operating model, setting the global ambition and identifying and managing the global tech platforms and product factories