Banco Santander Announces Promotion of Héctor Grisi Checa to Group CEO

Banco Santander announced yesterday that it has selected Héctor Blas Grisi Checa, currently CEO of Santander Mexico and head of North America, to succeed José Antonio Álvarez as group CEO, with effect on 1 January 2023.

Héctor joined Santander in 2015 as CEO of Santander Mexico and was named head of the Santander group’s North America region in 2019.

He has been in the banking sector for more than 35 years. Prior to Santander, Héctor has been with Credit Suisse for 18 years. His positions in the bank included head of Investment Banking for Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean, then President & CEO of Credit Suisse Mexico. From 1991 to 1997, he had held a number of roles in the investment and corporate banking divisions of Grupo Financiero Inverméxico. Between 1986 and 1991, he had worked in the corporate banking department of Casa de Bolsa Inverlat. Besides, Héctor has also served as vice chairman of the Mexican Banking Association.

“I am extremely grateful to José Antonio for the exceptional contribution he has made to the bank over the past 20 years. His leadership and dedication have been central to Santander’s growth and success. I value his insight and support hugely and am delighted that he will remain on the Board as non-executive vice-chair and will continue to support the bank as we build on the progress of recent years,” said Ana Botín, Banco Santander executive chair. 

“Héctor will be an outstanding successor to José Antonio. He brings decades of experience and a deep understanding of our markets and business, and a proven ability to lead in a collaborative way and create value for both customers and shareholders. His track record as CEO of Santander Mexico and head of North America speaks for itself and illustrates why we believe he is the right person to lead the bank in the next phase of our transformation and growth.”

Shortly before, Fazzaco reported that Pierre Habis​ has taken on expanded responsibilities as the new Chief Consumer & Digital Transformation Officer at Banco Santander.