A) Banco Santander is one of the leading international universal banks in the world. It
has subsidiaries mainly in Europe and the Americas (e.g., US, Mexico, Brazil, Chile,
etc.) and is expanding their business across the world.
Suppose you are a banking analyst and are asked to undertake research into one of the
Santander subsidiaries in Americas in the year of 2020.
You are required to answer the following questions in your essay
1) Explain the reason that you chose the subsidiary.
2) Calculate and compare profitability, capital risk and credit risk of the Santander
subsidiary you selected and Santander UK Ltd in the year of 2020. You need to
present ratios to demonstrate the required performance of the subsidiary you
choose and the UK subsidiary. When analysing the performance of the two
subsidiaries, you could consider both internal and external factors.
3) What kind of policies did the government of the country where the Santander
subsidiary you chose locates launch in response to the economy recession
caused by Covid-19? Discuss what the Santander subsidiary did to support the
economy and the risks that they are facing during the unprecedented times.
around 1800 words
B) More and more digital banks (FinTechs), such as Revolut, Monzo, Starling, Klarna
etc., set up and become threats to the traditional banks. For example, London-based
Revolut, a digital banking launched in July 2015, is more valuable than High Street
Bank NatWest in July 2021. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of using
digital banking services. Identify risks that the customers and the financial system
are facing if the nontraditional banks’ services are widely used.
