Santander’s Botin Touts ‘Friendly Deals’ as Key to Banking M&A

Banco Santander SA Executive Chair Ana Botin has a simple rule when it comes to M&A. Keep it cordial.

“Friendly deals are the way to go” in a world “where governments defend their countries” and “regulation is what it is,” Botin said on Bloomberg TV’s Wall Street Week on Friday.

Ana Botin

Photographer: Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg

Santander has concluded a pair of notable deals this year in Europe, buying Banco Sabadell SA’s TSB unit shortly after cutting a deal to sell its Polish unit to Erste Group Bank AG, one of the largest cross-border banking transactions in Europe in recent years.

That success contrasts ...