Santander UK said today it has decided not to publish its third-quarter results as the lender seeks clarity on the UK financial regulator's proposals related to the motor finance mis-selling scandal.
Santander UK added that it does not expect a material impact on its capital or liquidity position as a result of any potential increase to its existing motor finance provision, which was previously estimated at £295m to cover compensation.
The lender did not provide a new date for the third-quarter results, but said it expects to be in a position to give further information at its fourth-quarter update scheduled in February.
Meanwhile, the Santander Group today reported a 7.8% year-on-year rise in its third-quarter net profit, saying a strong performance in its US business offset lower lending income and some weakness in Brazil.
The net profit of €3.5 billion in the July-September quarter reported by the euro zone's biggest bank came above the €3.39 billion expected by analysts in a Reuters poll and was the sixth consecutive record-high quarterly result.
A rise of 4.3% in fees and of 0.87% in revenues compensated a decline of 1.1% in lending income, the Spanish bank said.
Santander's measure of profitability, tangible-equity ratio (ROTE) after the impact of additional Tier 1 (AT1) capital instruments, remained unchanged at 16.2% compared to the previous quarter. The bank said it was on track to meet its target of around 16.5% for this year and its full-year revenue target of around €62 billion.
Executive Chair Ana Botin said Santander's geographical spread - it operates in 10 core markets in Europe and the Americas - would act as a stabiliser in an uncertain global environment.
"Looking ahead, we are on track to meet all our 2025 targets and, amid continued geopolitical and market uncertainty, we are confident we will continue delivering further profitable growth," Botin said in a statement.
Underlying net profit in the US, its fifth-largest market, rose 64% supported by higher lending income and higher fees from its corporate and investment banking business.
The bank has benefited in the past from higher interest rates, while growth in key Latin American markets has given it an edge over more Europe-dependent rivals.
But it was hit by currency depreciations in some of its emerging markets, such as Brazil, where the real's devaluation drove the underlying net profit down 5.9% in the quarter.