Non-IFRS and alternative performance measures
In addition to the financial information prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and derived from our
financial statements, this document contains certain financial measures that constitute alternative performance measures (APMs) as defined in the Guidelines on Alternative Performance Measures issued by the European Securities and
Markets Authority (ESMA) on 5 October 2015 (ESMA/2015/1415en) and other non-IFRS measures (Non-IFRS Measures). The financial measures contained in this
document that qualify as APMs and non-IFRS measures have been calculated using the financial information from Santander Group but are not defined or detailed in the applicable financial reporting framework and
have neither been audited nor reviewed by our auditors. We use these APMs and non-IFRS measures when planning, monitoring and evaluating our performance. We consider these APMs and non-IFRS measures to be useful metrics for management and investors to facilitate operating performance comparisons from period to period, as these measures exclude items outside the ordinary course performance of
our business, which are grouped in the management adjustment line and are further detailed in Section 3.2. of the Economic and Financial Review in our Directors Report included in our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended 31 December 2019. While we believe that these APMs and non-IFRS measures are useful in evaluating our business, this information should be
considered as supplemental in nature and is not meant as a substitute of IFRS measures. In addition, other companies, including companies in our industry, may calculate or use such measures differently, which reduces their usefulness as comparative
measures. For further details of the APMs and Non-IFRS Measures used, including its definition or a reconciliation between any applicable management indicators and the financial data presented in the
consolidated financial statements prepared under IFRS, please see the 2019 Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on 6 March 2020, as well as the section
Alternative performance measures of the annex to the Banco Santander, S.A. (Santander) Q3 2020 Financial Report, published as Inside Information on 27 October 2020. These documents are available on Santanders
website (www.santander.com). Underlying measures, which are included in this document, are non-IFRS measures.
The businesses included in each of our geographic segments and the accounting principles under which their results are presented here may differ from the
included businesses and local applicable accounting principles of our public subsidiaries in such geographies. Accordingly, the results of operations and trends shown for our geographic segments may differ materially from those of such subsidiaries
Forward-looking statements
Santander cautions that
this document contains statements that constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements may be identified by words such as
expect, project, anticipate, should, intend, probability, risk, VaR, RoRAC, RoRWA, TNAV, target,
goal, objective, estimate, future and similar expressions. These forward-looking statements are found in various places throughout this document and include, without limitation, statements concerning
our future business development and economic performance and our shareholder remuneration policy. While these forward-looking statements represent our judgment and future expectations concerning the development of our business, a number of risks,
uncertainties and other important factors could cause actual developments and results to differ materially from our expectations. The following important factors, in addition to those discussed elsewhere in this document , could affect our future
results and could cause outcomes to differ materially from those anticipated in any forward-looking statement: (1) general economic or industry conditions in areas in which we have significant business activities or investments, including a
worsening of the economic environment, increasing in the volatility of the capital markets, inflation or deflation, changes in demographics, consumer spending, investment or saving habits, and the effects of the
COVID-19 pandemic in the global economy; (2) exposure to various types of market risks, principally including interest rate risk, foreign exchange rate risk, equity price risk and risks associated with
the replacement of benchmark indices; (3) potential losses associated with prepayment of our loan and investment portfolio, declines in the value of collateral securing our loan portfolio, and counterparty risk; (4) political stability in
Spain, the UK, other European countries, Latin America and the US; (5) changes in laws, regulations or taxes, including changes in regulatory capital and liquidity requirements, including as a result of the UK exiting the European Union and
increased regulation in light of the global financial crisis; (6) our ability to integrate successfully our acquisitions and the challenges inherent in diverting managements focus and resources from other strategic opportunities and from
operational matters while we integrate these acquisitions; and (7) changes in our ability to access liquidity and funding on acceptable terms, including as a result of changes in our credit spreads or a downgrade in our credit ratings or those
of our more significant subsidiaries.
Numerous factors could affect the future results of Santander and could result in those results deviating
materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements. Other unknown or unpredictable factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements.
Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this document and are based on the knowledge, information available and views taken on such date; such
knowledge, information and views may change at any time. Santander does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
No offer
The information contained in this document is
subject to, and must be read in conjunction with, all other publicly available information, including, where relevant any fuller disclosure document published by Santander. Any person at any time acquiring securities must do so only on the basis of
such persons own judgment as to the merits or the suitability of the securities for its purpose and only on such