Santander and Popular Launch ‘1|2|3 Profesional’, their First Joint Product Designed to Earn more than 100,000 New Self-employed Customers

• For the first time, the Bank expands the 1I2I3 World to customers from the self-employed and micro-SME segment of Popular, a benchmark for the sector, and reinforces the strategic focus on this group
• Two versions of the account are offered, one free of charge and a premium version that costs 3 euros per month and offers numerous advantages
• The premium version offers loans with preferential conditions, a flat rate for POS terminals and cash back and discounts on cards
• With this account, the Bank introduces a new customer relationship model for this segment, with 24 hour a day telephone attention, 800 specialized managers and specific services, such as digital invoice management or processing of subsidies

Santander Spain and Popular are taking another step in their integration process with the joint launch, in April of a product aligned with the 1|2|3 strategy that offers Santander and Popular customers in the self-employed and micro-SME segment access to the advantages of the 1|2|3 World for the first time. The highlight of the new proposition is the 1|2|3 Profesional account, but account holders can also access loans with preferred conditions and benefit from a new customer relationship model, with 800 specialized managers, faster digital product onboarding and a series of specific services tailored to the needs of the self-employed with customer service available 24 hours a day.

The Bank reinforces its strategy to focus on this segment, which is key to the Spanish economy and employment. Its goal is to earn more than 100,000 new customers in the first year.

The Bank extends to this segment the freemium concept (i.e., one free version and another at a cost, but with more benefits) employed for other products in the 1|2|3 World, such as the Smart account for children, with the goal to reward customer loyalty. In order to be eligible for the fee-free account, two out of these three requirements must be met: the first, have 1,800 euros in income quarterly; the second, use the account for employee payroll or social security payments, and, the third, use the cards, the POS terminal, or sign up for a foreign trade, invoice management or commercial discount product. In its premium version, the 1|2|3 Profesional account costs 3 euros a month and requires that the three mentioned conditions are met and that at least one of the card transactions for the month is a credit card transaction. If conditions are not met, 9 euros would be charged for either version of the account.

Free withdrawals at 7,500 ATMs in Spain and 25,000 throughout the world
The Premium account offers outstanding advantages such as a flat rate for POS terminals, starting at 7 euros for Santander and Popular, and cashback for ordinary business expenses (1% for payroll/Social Security payments, 2% for taxes and 3% for utilities, private security and insurance), as well as the discounts for cards (1% for hotel and travel expenses, 2% for restaurants and 3% for gasoline and taxis).

The account includes free debit, credit and revolving cards if the three conditions are met. One of the main benefits of having a debit card associated to the 1|2|3 Profesional account is having access to an international network of 25,000 ATMs from which cash can be withdrawn free of charge in all of the countries in which the Santander Group operates and 7,500 ATMs of the two networks in Spain.

The revolving credit card offers cardholders the equivalent of a credit policy, with one of the most competitive interest rates on the market.

The range of credit products includes all the facets of business activity (loans to cover taxes, credit policy, professional activity, site mortgage, vehicle and technology leasing). Most of the products can be contracted through the different channels: the 4,500 branches of both networks, smartphone, APP, Supernet and Contact Center. The Bank has also improved the multichannel contracting processes to improve agility and save time on daily processes, reducing to just 10 minutes the time needed for the entire onboarding process.

The CEO of Santander España and Popular, Rami Aboukhair, said: “We are focusing on a segment key for the Spanish economy in line with our aim to help businesses and families prosper. We have designed the best product on the market for the self-employed and micro-SMEs, with a focus on improving customer experience and giving our clients more reasons to join us, to stay with us and to recommend us”.