Banco Santander has confirmed speculation that it is looking to sell all or part of its asset management arm.
In a statement to the London Stock Exchange this morning, the Spanish bank said it is “exploring the possibility of incorporating investors to its asset management division”.
The statement was a response to press speculation that it would look to offload the funds business, which had €161bn (£137.6bn) in assets at the end of the first quarter of 2013, following in the wake of other large banks that have sold their asset management divisions to focus on core businesses.
The news comes after Banco Santander reported a 26 per cent fall in first-quarter net profits as a number of its key markets suffered a slowdown.
Santander’s UK-domiciled funds include the £1.2bn Santander UK Growth fund, run by Richard Moore, and a range of multi-manager funds managed by Tom Caddick and Toby Vaughan.
