Héctor Grisi

Overview

Héctor Grisi
Born	1966 (age 59–60) Mexico City, Mexico
Citizenship	Mexico
Education	Degree in finance (cum laude)
Alma mater	Universidad Iberoamericana; New York Institute of Finance (postgraduate coursework)
Occupation(s)	Banker and business executive
Employer	Banco Santander
Known for	Chief executive officer of Banco Santander and former chief executive of Santander México
Title	Group chief executive officer
Term	2023–present
Predecessor	José Antonio Álvarez
Board member of	Banco Santander; Bolsa Mexicana de Valores; Universidad Iberoamericana; PagoNxt; Cogrimex, S.A. de C.V.
Children	3

🌍 Héctor Grisi (born 1966) is a Mexican banker and business executive who has served as chief executive officer (CEO) of Banco Santander since 1 January 2023, becoming the first Mexican and first non-European to lead the Eurozone’s second-largest bank. Prior to his group appointment he was CEO of Santander México from 2015 and regional head for North America, roles in which he oversaw a far-reaching digital and commercial transformation of the bank’s Mexican franchise and helped strengthen links between Santander’s operations in Mexico and the United States. Earlier in his career he spent 18 years at Credit Suisse, including as president and CEO of Credit Suisse México, giving him a dual background in investment and commercial banking across Latin America.

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Early life and education

👶 Family background and early interests. Héctor Blas Grisi Checa was born in Mexico City in 1966 into a well-educated family and grew up in the Mexican capital, where he developed an early interest in finance and international business. Accounts from Mexican business media and Santander’s own biographies describe him as outward-looking from a young age, drawn to the mechanics of capital markets and to the prospect of working in a global financial institution.

🎓 University studies and international exposure. Grisi studied finance at Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City, graduating cum laude, and spent part of his undergraduate years in Canada, an experience that reinforced his interest in cross-border business and broadened his cultural perspective. He later complemented his degree with postgraduate coursework in markets and finance at the New York Institute of Finance, building a technical grounding that would underpin his later work in investment and retail banking.

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Early banking career

💼 First roles in Mexican finance. In the late 1980s Grisi began his professional career in Mexico’s financial sector, working at Casa de Bolsa Inverlat and Grupo Financiero InverMéxico in corporate and investment banking positions. These early posts introduced him to areas such as capital markets, corporate advisory and structured finance, and gave him exposure to both domestic clients and foreign institutions active in Mexico.

🌪️ Tequila crisis and the sale of Banco Mexicano. A formative episode occurred during the 1994–1995 Mexican peso crisis, often called the “Tequila crisis”, when Grisi was an executive at Banco Mexicano, part of the InverMéxico group. As the peso collapsed and the banking system faltered, the bank was sold to Spain’s Banco Santander, and Grisi participated in navigating the institution through the turmoil and eventual transaction. Colleagues and observers have said that managing a bank amid crisis at such an early stage in his career helped forge the calm, unflappable demeanor that would later be regarded as one of his defining traits, with former OECD secretary-general Ángel Gurría remarking that he seems to have “all the time in the world” and handles issues calmly.

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Credit Suisse

🏛️ Rise through Credit Suisse. Following the turbulence of the mid-1990s, Grisi moved into international banking. In 1997 he joined Credit Suisse, beginning an 18-year tenure at the Swiss institution during which he held a series of increasingly senior roles. After leading investment banking coverage for Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, he was appointed president and CEO of Credit Suisse México in 2001 and joined both the Americas Management Committee and the bank’s Global Operating Committee, reflecting his growing influence within the firm.

📊 Deal-making and regional reputation. At Credit Suisse, Grisi oversaw advisory teams on major corporate transactions across Latin America, combining investment banking expertise with an understanding of local markets. Commentators credit this period with giving him a world-class finance pedigree and a broad international network, while also exposing him to retail and commercial banking issues that would prove important when he later moved to a universal bank such as Santander. By the mid-2010s he had amassed more than three decades of experience in financial services, blending capital markets and commercial banking know-how.

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Santander México

🏦 Appointment as CEO of Santander México. In December 2015 Grisi left Credit Suisse to join Banco Santander as chief executive officer of Santander México (Grupo Financiero Santander México), one of the Spanish group’s largest subsidiaries. Santander’s leadership viewed the hiring of a Mexican national with global investment banking experience as a way to reinforce its position in a strategically important Latin American market, while for Grisi the move offered the opportunity to run a major universal bank in his home country. He assumed the role at a time when the Mexican franchise’s profitability lagged some peers, despite growth in assets, and he quickly signaled that he would pursue a comprehensive turnaround plan.

📲 Customer-centric and digital transformation. Shortly after taking charge, Grisi ordered an exhaustive review of Santander México’s operations and wrote to shareholders that his objective was to make the institution “the main bank for our customers” by reorganizing around their needs. Under his leadership the bank launched a multi-year program worth more than US$1 billion to modernize branches, upgrade infrastructure and reinforce its technology platforms, while rolling out new mobile and online services and redesigning products for ease of use and wider access. Grisi placed particular emphasis on financial inclusion and digital payments, frequently expressing a desire to eliminate paper-based instruments altogether and joking that his “letter to Santa Claus” would ask to get rid of checks and even cash.

📈 Growth, profitability and inclusion. The strategic shift reshaped Santander México’s performance indicators. Between 2015 and early 2022 the subsidiary’s return on tangible equity rose from under 20 percent to around 31 percent, the highest of any Santander unit worldwide, and by the first quarter of 2022 it had become the most profitable national unit in the group. During Grisi’s tenure the number of active customers increased by roughly half to about 10 million, while the count of “loyal” customers with multiple products approximately doubled. Santander México also climbed to second place in the country by total assets, gaining market share in areas such as mortgages, small and medium-sized enterprise lending, corporate banking and project finance, and launched new businesses including an automobile finance arm and the “Tuiio” microcredit division targeting low-income clients. Grisi has highlighted the bank’s efforts to bring previously unbanked individuals into the formal financial system through simplified accounts and digital channels as one of the key achievements of this period.

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Regional and group leadership at Santander

🌎 Regional head for North America. In late 2019 Santander promoted Grisi to regional head for North America, placing him in charge of coordinating the group’s operations in Mexico and the United States while he continued to oversee the Mexican franchise. In this role he worked to increase “connectivity” between the two markets, seeking synergies in technology platforms and cross-selling opportunities for corporate clients with activities on both sides of the border, and contributed to the roll-out of the group-wide “One Santander” initiative to standardize systems and processes.

🧭 Nomination as group chief executive. On 17 June 2022 Banco Santander’s board announced that Grisi would succeed José Antonio Álvarez as group CEO with effect from 1 January 2023. The decision followed an earlier, abandoned attempt to appoint external banker Andrea Orcel, which had resulted in a legal dispute, and was widely interpreted as a move toward continuity and internal promotion. Spanish and international media underlined the historic nature of the nomination, noting that Grisi would be the first Mexican—and more broadly the first non-European—to head the Madrid-based bank. Executive chair Ana Botín praised his leadership and track record in Mexico and North America and said that his familiarity with the group’s businesses would allow for a smooth succession and a continued focus on growth and digital transformation.

🚀 Strategy and performance as CEO. After formally taking office in early 2023, Grisi assumed responsibility for a bank with roughly €1.7–1.8 trillion in assets and close to 200,000 employees across Europe and the Americas. He has emphasized evolution rather than rupture, reiterating priorities such as simplifying the organizational structure, accelerating digitalization and enhancing risk management, and has stated that he wants Santander to become a “simpler, more agile and digitally integrated financial institution”. Under his tenure the group has reported record profits for several consecutive years; in 2024 net income reached about €12.57 billion, a 14 percent increase on 2023, while return on tangible equity rose above 15 percent and the share price gained more than 20 percent for the year, outpacing many European peers. Grisi has attributed these results to consistent execution of the group’s strategy across geographies, benefiting from higher interest rates in mature markets such as the United Kingdom and the United States while expanding lending in growth markets including Brazil and Mexico.

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Compensation, wealth and other roles

💶 Executive compensation and wealth. As group CEO of Santander, Grisi receives a remuneration package that combines fixed salary with variable components linked to multi-year performance metrics and shareholder returns. In 2023, his first year in the role, his total compensation has been reported at around €6.8 million, including a €3 million fixed salary and bonus and equity elements, while for 2024 his pay was increased to an estimated €8.3 million, reflecting the bank’s strong results and the vesting of long-term incentives. Analysts and corporate-governance specialists generally describe him as a career executive, rather than a founder or controlling shareholder, and there is no public indication that he holds a stake that would place his net worth in billionaire territory; instead, his personal wealth is thought to derive mainly from decades of salary, bonuses and deferred stock awards at Credit Suisse and Santander.

🧑‍💼 Industry positions and board memberships. Beyond his chief executive responsibilities, Grisi has held various roles in financial and academic institutions. In Mexico he served as vice-chairman of the Mexican Banking Association and sat on the board of directors of the Bolsa Mexicana de Valores, contributing to discussions on the development of the country’s banking and capital markets. He has also been a member of the board of trustees of Universidad Iberoamericana, his alma mater, and within the Santander group he has served as non-executive chairman of the Mexican entity Cogrimex, S.A. de C.V., and as a director of PagoNxt, the bank’s global fintech and payments platform. Outside the Santander universe he has not been prominently associated with the boards of other listed companies, focusing primarily on the operations he oversees as group CEO.

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Personal life and interests

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Family and temperament. Grisi is married with three children and is widely described as a low-key, approachable figure despite his senior position. Colleagues depict him as having an open-door management style and a calm demeanor; Ángel Gurría has observed that he appears to have “all the time in the world” for those he meets and handles issues calmly, a quality that has reinforced his image as a consensus-builder within a large, multi-national organization. He is fluent in Spanish and English and is accustomed to operating across the cultures of Mexico, Spain, the United States and other markets in which Santander is active.

🏃 Hobbies, public profile and philanthropy. Outside work, Grisi is known as an avid runner who uses early-morning jogs to clear his mind, and friends compare his steady pace in long-distance running to his methodical approach to long-term strategic goals. He has spoken of his interest in reading, particularly on history and economics, and tends to maintain a relatively modest public profile compared with some other high-profile bank chief executives, preferring to let results and the institution’s performance speak for themselves. Those who have worked with him note a dry sense of humor that can help defuse tension in meetings, and former CEO José Antonio Álvarez has jokingly described him as “a great guy – and funnier than me”. Throughout his career, especially during his time at Santander México, Grisi has supported corporate-responsibility initiatives such as scholarship programs and projects to promote financial inclusion and environmental sustainability, including financing renewable energy and efforts to reduce the bank’s carbon footprint.

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Controversies and challenges

⚖️ Debate over executive pay. Grisi’s tenure as Santander’s chief executive has so far been largely free of personal scandal, but debates over executive compensation have drawn scrutiny. At the 2023 annual general meeting, Santander’s remuneration report received around 74 percent support from shareholders—lower than the levels above 90 percent recorded in previous years—as some institutional investors questioned aspects of the pay structure for top management. In response, the bank’s board undertook a review of its remuneration policies, engaging with shareholders and introducing changes such as a greater weighting of long-term, share-based incentives and more demanding performance conditions in an effort to align pay more closely with long-term value creation. For Grisi, whose own pay rose as Santander delivered record profits, balancing competitive compensation with evolving investor expectations has remained an ongoing governance challenge.

✂️ Cost-cutting and workforce reductions. Another sensitive area has been cost-efficiency measures within the group. In the context of higher inflation, competitive pressures and the shift toward digital banking channels, Santander has undertaken restructuring initiatives in several markets, including plans announced in 2023 to cut more than 1,400 jobs in its United Kingdom operations. The job reductions, which drew criticism from labor unions, form part of the “One Santander” program to streamline the group’s structure and invest in technology, and have required careful management to limit reputational and employee-relations risks, particularly in Spain and the United Kingdom where bank layoffs are politically sensitive.

🤖 Technology, sustainability and sector outlook. As CEO, Grisi has articulated an optimistic but cautious view of emerging technologies and environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues. In 2025 he argued that the adoption of artificial intelligence in banking would not “destroy lots of jobs” but would instead require reskilling of workers, framing AI as an opportunity for productivity gains and new roles rather than large-scale displacement. On climate change and sustainability he has endorsed Santander’s commitments to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 and to expand green finance, building on environmental and social programs he previously championed in Mexico. Grisi has also occasionally commented on sector developments, such as potential consolidation in Mexican banking, taking a measured approach that emphasizes regulatory conditions and long-term competitiveness—for example in discussions about the planned sale of Citigroup’s Banamex unit, where he suggested that any acquisition should be carefully structured to strengthen the system rather than pursued at any cost. More broadly, commentators note that he faces ongoing challenges common to large global banks, including navigating interest-rate cycles, geopolitical risk, cyber-security and competition from fintech firms, while maintaining strong capital and liquidity and preserving the confidence of customers, regulators and investors.

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Legacy and recognition

⭐ Symbolism and impact in global banking. Observers have highlighted the symbolic importance of Grisi’s rise from Mexico City banker to chief executive of a major European institution. His appointment is seen as emblematic of the growing weight of Latin America in Santander’s earnings—roughly one-third of the group’s profits are generated in the region—and of the increasing diversity of leadership at the top of global finance. Mexican media have portrayed him as one of the country’s most prominent bankers on the international stage, while at Santander he has promoted the notion of “Responsible Banking: business with purpose”, emphasizing that profitability should be combined with support for customers and communities.

🌐 Leadership style and ongoing tenure. Commentators frequently describe Grisi’s leadership as combining a forward-looking, technology-friendly stance with an appreciation for more traditional virtues of relationship banking, face-to-face contact and detailed analysis of balance sheets. He has credited the early lessons of the 1994 crisis and his years in Latin American markets with teaching him prudence and adaptability, traits that he has applied to managing a global, systemically important bank through an era of rapid change. As of the mid-2020s his tenure as Santander’s CEO is still unfolding, but his track record in Mexico and North America, together with the group’s recent profitability, has reinforced his image as a calm “insider” leader whose approach centers on steady execution, collaboration across borders and a focus on long-term value creation.

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