Ana Botín runs a bank with more customers than JPMorgan Chase or Bank of America—and says her job takes the discipline of an Olympic athlete

CEO Agenda provides unique insights into how leaders think and lead and what keeps them busy in a world of constant change. We look into the lives, minds and agendas of CEOs at the world’s most iconic companies.

Ana Botín doesn’t have “normal” days.

As the decade-long executive chair of Santander, one of Europe’s largest banks by total assets, she’s always flying from one part of the world to another (when she chatted with Fortune, she was back in Madrid from a visit to Mexico, gearing up to head to Doha and New York in subsequent weeks). 

In 2014, when Botín succeeded her father, Emilio, the longtime chairman of Santander credited with making the bank a household name globally, she had big shoes to fill. Today, she’s one of the few women to lead a major bank, counting over 170 million customers. Yet she doesn’t let that burden get in the way of her jubilance. Santander’s blockbuster profits of €12.6 billion last year, up 14% from 2023, followed by plans to return €10 billion to investors through share buybacks over the next two years, may be part of the reason for this.

Santander spent the better part of the 21st century expanding its business and navigating Europe’s regulatory thicket. However, some of its business bets, such as its focus on digital banking, have started to pay off. Santander has recently benefited from a confluence of other factors as well, including higher interest rates following the COVID-19 pandemic, robust retail spending, and a strong performance from its investment banking business in the U.S. 

The Spanish lender has continued to multiply its customers, eclipsing the same figures at behemoths like JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America (as Botín pointed out to President Donald Trump at a World Economic Forum panel in January). 

Santander’s shares have more than tripled in value since the fall of 2020. On Tuesday, Santander's market cap surpassed €100 billion, making it the first bank in the European Union to cross that threshold in the last decade, ahead of rivals like BNP Paribas and Intesa Sanpaolo.

Botín says experiencing Santander’s boom has left her feeling “like Jeff Bezos,” a fellow leader
who weathered a decade of stock market under-performance in the 2000s before investors globally recognized the tremendous value he’d created in Amazon.

Today, a key piece of Botín’s job goes beyond the bread and butter of banking; she needs to stay abreast of trends like AI and regulation. How she does that is with a trait she looks for in those she hires at Santander: a sense of urgency.

“When you want to change an organization of 200,000 people, it’s almost like changing a government,” Botín told Fortune. 

Botín may be the most celebrated female leader in Europe’s financial sector, but there’s more to her than a clear passion for the bank she leads: She’s a keen golfer and wearer of Zara jackets who maintains a policy of no email after 7:30 p.m. 

Her typical routine consists of wellness rituals that keep her active. She has also accepted that her lifestyle isn’t without its sacrifices, given her high-stakes gig: “I’m a very happy person, but I cannot enjoy my hobbies as much as I would like, because I need to be—literally—like an Olympic athlete,” she said. “If you have a mission that matters … it’s worth it.”

Following the Santander board’s €6.3 billion dividend announcement, we sat down with Botín
to discuss business, life, and more. 

This interview has been edited for brevity.

Down to business

Fortune: Which long-term trend are you most bullish about for society and the economy at large? 

The rise of AI and automation is going to be the defining trend of the 21st century and will be a disruptive force in society. It will bring increased prosperity in the long run but requires [us] to rethink how government builds new frameworks together with the private sector and academia that rewrite the rules of competition, taxes, education, and pensions, amongst others, to address disparities that exist already and will widen between different sectors of the economy and people. 

How can European leaders address the productivity gap with the U.S.? 

We are in an era of disruption, and we have to be honest with society about the scale of the challenge and the urgency of the need for change. To do that there are some quick wins, like focusing on reducing regulatory and supervisory complexity. But longer term, we must do much more to embrace innovation and enterprise, creating a business environment and culture that rewards smart risk-taking. And a new “social compact” is essential. 

Being productive

What time do you get up, and what part of your morning routine prepares you for the day? 

My usual morning routine involves waking up at 6 a.m., spending 10 to 20 minutes relaxing and drinking warm water with fresh organic lemons—very alkaline—followed by Americano coffee with cashew milk, and doing e-mails. 

I then do 45 minutes to one hour of cardio and weights, followed by breakfast: homemade gluten-free bread; avocado with a spoon of apple cider vinegar, which regulates insulin and glucose levels; olive oil; and protein—two eggs and/or turkey or sardines.

How late do you work? Do you continue sending emails during the night and on weekends? 

I try to stop sending emails after 7 or 7:30 p.m., both during the week and [on] weekends. I also try to not send emails on Saturdays, so we all can take a day off (not always possible). I generally use Sunday mornings to work on reading and writing, and Sunday afternoons (not always) to catch up on one-to-ones with the team. I follow the same routine every day and skip dinner at least five days a week.

What apps or methods do you use to be more productive?

My Olympic gold medalist nephew, Diego, introduced me to the Oura Ring four or five years ago, and I also use Fitbit to track cardio health [and] sleep. I measure daily what helps me sleep better so I am able to have the energy for sports and work and to enjoy my free time (there’s not much).

Who is on your “personal board”—that is, who inspires and motivates you?

My family is the biggest inspiration for me: My mother, Paloma O’Shea, has given me a great education and has been an example of hard work and aiming high. She literally founded the Escuela Reina Sofía in a garage 25 years ago. Today it ranks alongside Curtis Institute and Juilliard as a top musical education school. The school’s orchestra will perform at Carnegie Hall in November.

My husband, Guillermo Morenés, has also been an amazing partner. We have three sons together and made a deal at the start that we would share responsibilities for the family 50/50. This support has been essential, and I could not have been able to balance career and family without him.

Finally, Seve Ballesteros, a two-time Masters tournament champion golf player, taught me golf and also how to trust yourself for those impossible Seve shots.

Getting personal

As a consumer, what is your favorite company and why?

Inditex, owner of Zara. I have a Zara €50 jacket that I got eight years ago, which I still use and gets mistaken for Chanel. This is my aim for [Santander’s digital] Openbank: a bank that works for everyone, from the young 20-year-old to the investment manager to the retired pensioner, that is also an “aspirational” brand, affordable but “cool” and fashionable. Zara’s ability to constantly innovate while maintaining its core values is truly inspiring.

And to end on a lighter note: What’s your favorite cuisine to cook and eat?

I love to cook a tortilla de patatas [a Spanish omelet]. The ingredients are simple: just eggs, potatoes, onion, and a little oil. Delicious.

CEO Agenda provides unique insights into how leaders think and lead, and what keeps them busy in a world of constant change. We look into the lives, minds and agendas of CEOs at the world’s most iconic companies. Dive into our other CEO Agenda profiles.

This article appears in the April/May 2025 issue of Fortune with the headline 'CEO Agenda: A Q&A With Ana Botín'.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com