Capstone Project

Title

Translation and Analysis of Grupo Santander Annual Report 2013

Author

Patrick Daley
pdaley2
667818754

Spring Semester 2015, Champaign-Urbana, IL

Course: TRST 440
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe

Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy

Content
1. Introduction.2
2. Stylistic Features.3
3. Audience..5
4. Terminology and Research..8
5. Term Base9
6. Translation.14
7. Challenges.21
8. Takeaways.22
9. Bibliography..23
10.

Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy

1. Introduction
For my capstone project, I have chosen to translate the Economic and Financial Report section
of the Santander Group Annual report from 2013. I have chosen this document because I am
pursuing a business minor here at the University of Illinois, and feel that this could be a good
source of leverage for landing a potential career in the future. I have also used Santander
Group while I studied abroad in Granada, Spain, as a secondary bank to access money easily.
Here I will discuss: stylistic features of the source text along with all of my other corpus and
parallel texts, the target audience, terminology and research, challenges, and takeaways from
the process of a translation project.

Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy

2. Stylistic Features of Source, Corpus, and Parallel

Texts
As previously mentioned, my source text is the Economic and Financial Report section of the
2013 Santander Group annual report. For my other corpus documents I have chosen the
annual report for two other Spanish banks: Banco de Espaa, and La Caixa. For my parallel
texts, I have chosen the English translation of the Banco de Espaa and La Caixa annual
reports, as well as the annual report from Chase Bank since it is my primary bank.
As mentioned on the Society for Technical Communication website, one important stylistic
feature to keep in mind is graphs. The website states Technical illustrations clarify steps or
identify the parts of a product, letting users focus on getting their task done quickly or more
accurately showing that part of the translation would be to consider how to translate any
graphs or tables into the target language. In addition, there are many facts and figure and
abbreviations that are included. This poses the challenge of equivalence between the two
languages with regards to acronyms and abbreviations for example PIB in Spanish is
equivalent to GDP in English.
Another salient stylistic feature of a technical document would be the repetition of specialized
terms. As was discussed in the TRST 407 course, terminology is a key part of technical
translation. Terminology can make translation much easier provided that the terminologist
makes a very detailed and accurate term base to use as a foundation for the translation. A good
term base can serve to contextualize and simplify a very specialized field and set of
vocabulary so that someone outside that field can understand it easier. The terms in this case
would be related to, but not limited to, finance, economics, and mathematics. As I have
learned from my business classes, these three fields are almost always related to each other
when considering a business decision or proposition.
What strikes me about the difference between my source text and the other texts in my corpus
are some formatting differences. In general, they all follow the HATS guidelines which stand
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Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy
for Headings, Access, Typography, and Space. Since these reports are mostly distributed in
electronic form through the company website, they are for the most part easy to navigate with
consistent type fonts. All of the reports also have many charts and graphs accompanied by
what the chart or graph may mean and how to interpret the data presented. However, this type
of document also lends itself to the IMRAD for the discussion portion. As I have mentioned,
after each chart or graph there is an analysis (discussion) of each chart and how to interpret it.
What strikes me as important in the corpus of materials that I have collected is that the charts
and graphs and other graphics are working in conjunction with the text presented in order to
make the information understandable. That being said, I think that using SDL Trados to
translate the document will facilitate the translation of these charts and graphs by keeping the
formatting and referencing the same as in the source text. The same can be said for the
bolding, coloring, and positioning of all of the text in order to conform to the HATS guidelines
that the source text follows.
Another part of my corpus that strikes me as important is the style of the writing. As I have
discussed before, the Spanish texts are tending to be about twice as long as the English
translation of that text. For example, the Banco de Espaa report in Spanish is 258 pages, and
in English it is only 130 pages. This simply comes down to the manner of writing in Spanish
as opposed to the manner of writing in English and can be easily managed throughout the
translation process.

Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy

3. Audience
The main audience for the Santander Annual Report is all of the stakeholders with respect to
the Santander Group. As I have learned in a management class that I am taking this year is that
stakeholders are different from shareholders. Granted, shareholders are stakeholders, however
stakeholders include anyone affected by the company such as suppliers, distributors, and
customers, who may not necessarily be shareholders. The annual report also goes to every
employee of the company so that the company can be salient with their employees and so they
know the condition of the company.
The specific section that I chose, the financial and economic report, is probably intended for
people who do business with the bank internationally because it addresses most of the major
world economies. It does however also address the domestic financial and economic situation
of Spain, so it is also intended for anyone concerned with the economic and financial situation
in Spain, which recently has not been a healthy state. This could be geared toward financial
analysts or financial planners either domestically or internationally.
Employees of the bank also are an audience for the annual report, since they work for the
institution, but may not know the overall condition of the company because they are focused
in a certain department. For example, the person I chose to review and revise my translation
has been working in the HR department for a number of years. He has been very high up in
the HR department for US Bank and PNC and has had many annual reports come across his
desk over the years. Surely, through his years of exposure to reports of this nature, he has
picked up on some norms and conventions of reports that can help me greatly.
Another potential audience could be potential investors in the banks since, in the report; there
is a forecast and plan for the next fiscal year. When the bank divulges its plan for the
following year, it becomes a more attractive investment opportunity. The plan needs to be very
detailed with reachable goals so that the bank can bring in more investments to expand its
operations.
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Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy

It also can be geared toward the SEC to ensure that the company is following the proper
regulations and not conducting business illegally. Although banks have to file a different
report for the SEC (that only includes the data), the bank also includes this data with plans and
explanations. The SEC probably pays a bit more attention to detail than most people, and also
ensures that the data is correctly presented and not deceiving. With respect to how the report is
geared toward its customers, Santander would like to explain the condition of the bank
financially, and assure them that their money is safe and secure. This provides a clear
statement of the condition of the bank, even despite the economic downturn recently.
The most important factor to consider when identifying the audience is what type of culture is
targeted. Having taken a course in International Business, I can state that business varies
culture to culture based on the values of the society. A North American business document
would be very different from an East Asian business document. In North America, the society
tends to be more individualistic where on the other hand the society structure in East Asia is
more communal and team driven. This would pose a large problem to a translator if the correct
target audience was not identified. The same could be said for the difference in conventions
of how to address and sign off of a document. There are much different conventions when
greeting or saluting on a business document depending on what region (culture) of the world
you are in. For example in North America, it is preferred to get right to the point of the subject
on which you are writing, but in Europe, because of language and customs, it may be more
acceptable to ease into the topic rather than dive straight in. Another convention that is
followed by North Americans, but not necessarily Europeans, in my case Spaniards, is the use
of active and passive voice. Americans use both sets of voices about equally, however it is not
very common in Spanish to use the passive voice due to its unnatural sound when
communicating.
All in all there is a wide variety of audiences for a bank the size of Santander Group. Since the
bank is one of the largest in Spain, it reaches a wide variety of audiences. Also, one final
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Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy
audience of the Santander report could be the Spanish national government. Since the
government in Spain is organized in a different way than the US government, they may have
different regulations and banking customs than the US. For example, the tax rate is much
higher in Spain, but those taxes pay for a lot of healthcare and education, two industries that
are not privatized like they are in the United States.

Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy

4. Terminology and Research

To begin my terminology mining, I first used the program AntConc to simply find the most
commonly used words in each of the reports that I have chosen. After I had a list of the most
common words, I then narrowed the scope by only picking terms that were specific to the field
of business, in particular with respect to economics and finance. Therefore, the terms that I
have chosen (in English) are: allowance, basis point (b.p.), capital, capital stock, depreciation,
eurosystem, fiscal year, gross domestic product (GDP), inflation, insolvency proceedings,
liquidity, market, portfolio, quarter, remuneration, revenue, sector, Single Resolution
Mechanism (SRM), Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM), and solvency.

After deciding that all of these terms were appropriate, I then used the software SDL
MultiTerm to organize the terms into an organized term base as pictured below.
As far as research to find suitable definitions, for the most part I used a book by Karin Kiser
called Diccionario Bilinge de Negocios which is translated as Bilingual Business Dictionary.
This book is a bilingual dictionary that contained many of the terms that I chose to include in
my term base. If a particular term was not in this book, I used many other websites such as
WordReference, Investopedia, European Central Bank, European Union, and
Businessdictionary.com. All of these resources helped me throughout the process in order to
find appropriate definitions for all of the terms.

Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy

5. Term Base

A
allowance
Part of Speech: Noun Definition: Provision or assignation of resources with a particular objective. Definition
Source: Kiser, Karin N. Diccionario Bilinge De Negocios = Bilingual Business Dictionary. Chicago, IL: Dearborn
Financial Pub., 1999. Print.
Spanish dotacin Part of Speech: Noun Gender: Feminine Definition: Provisin o asignacin de recursos con un
determinado fin. Definition Source: Kiser, Karin N. Diccionario Bilinge De Negocios = Bilingual Business
Dictionary. Chicago, IL: Dearborn Financial Pub., 1999. Print.

B
basis point (b.p.)
Part of Speech: Noun Definition: Smallest measure of quoting the yield on a bond, note, or other debt instrument.
Definition Source: "What Is Basis Point? Definition and Meaning." BusinessDictionary.com. Web Finance Inc., 2015.
Web. 27 Apr. 2015.
Spanish punto bsico (p.b.) Part of Speech: Noun Gender: Masculine Definition: Una medicin de los cambios o
diferencias de tipos de inters. Definition Source: "PUNTO BSICO." Enciclopedia De Economa. Enciclopedia De
Economa, 2009. Web. 27 Apr. 2015.

C
capital
Part of Speech: Noun Definition: A type of good that can be consumed now, but if consumption is deferred an
increased supply of consumable goods is likely to be available later. Definition Source: "Capital (economics)."
Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 07 Apr. 2015.
Spanish capital Part of Speech: Noun Gender: Masculine Definition: Es uno de los factores de la produccin y est
presentado por "el conjunto de bienes" necesarios "para producir riqueza." Definition Source: "Capital Econmico."
Wikipedia, La Enciclopedia Libre. Wikimedia Foundation, 2015. Web. 27 Apr. 2015.

capital stock
Part of Speech: Noun Definition: Company assets provided by shareholders that entitles them to certain rights.
Definition Source: Kiser, Karin N. Diccionario Bilinge De Negocios = Bilingual Business Dictionary. Chicago, IL:
Dearborn Financial Pub., 1999. Print.
Spanish capital social Part of Speech: Noun Gender: Masculine Definition: Bienes aportado por los accionistas
para constituir el patrimonio social que les otorgan sus derechos sociales. Definition Source: Kiser, Karin N.
Diccionario Bilinge De Negocios = Bilingual Business Dictionary. Chicago, IL: Dearborn Financial Pub., 1999.
Print.

D
depreciation

Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy
Part of Speech: Noun Definition: Acknowledgement of the gradual loss in value of a fixed asset throughout its
physical or economic life by deduction a percentage of its value each financial year. Definition Source: Kiser, Karin
N. Diccionario Bilinge De Negocios = Bilingual Business Dictionary. Chicago, IL: Dearborn Financial Pub., 1999.
Print.
Spanish amortizacin Part of Speech: Noun Gender: Feminine Definition: Reconocimiento de la prdida gradual
de valor de un activo fijo a lo largo de su vida fsica o econmica dando como gasto del ejercicio un porcentaje de su
valor. Definition Source: Kiser, Karin N. Diccionario Bilinge De Negocios = Bilingual Business Dictionary.
Chicago, IL: Dearborn Financial Pub., 1999. Print.

E
eurosystem
Part of Speech: Noun Definition: Comprises the European Central Bank (ECB) and the national central banks
(NCBs) of those countries that have adopted the euro. Definition Source: "Eurosystem." Eurosystem. UNTERM, n.d.
Web. 08 Apr. 2015.
Spanish eurosistema Part of Speech: Noun Gender: Masculine Definition: Est formado por el BCE y los BCN de
los Estados miembros que han adoptado el euro. Definition Source: "BCE, SEBC Y Eurosistema." Banco Central
Europeo. European Central Bank, 2015. Web. 27 Apr. 2015.

F
fiscal year
Part of Speech: Noun Definition: Period for which the Public Administration's revenue and expenses are budged and
taxes accrued. Definition Source: Kiser, Karin N. Diccionario Bilinge De Negocios = Bilingual Business Dictionary.
Chicago, IL: Dearborn Financial Pub., 1999. Print.
Spanish ejercicio Part of Speech: Noun Gender: Masculine Definition: Periodo de doce meses en el que se realizan,
para efectos contables y econmicos, las actividades de la empresa, se calcula el resultado de operacin y se
devenga el impuesto. Definition Source: Kiser, Karin N. Diccionario Bilinge De Negocios = Bilingual Business
Dictionary. Chicago, IL: Dearborn Financial Pub., 1999. Print.

G
gross domestic product (GDP)
Part of Speech: Noun Definition: Total value of the goods and services produced in a country within a given period
(normally a year) after deducting that which has been consumed during production. Definition Source: Kiser, Karin
N. Diccionario Bilinge De Negocios = Bilingual Business Dictionary. Chicago, IL: Dearborn Financial Pub., 1999.
Print.
Spanish producto interior bruto (PIB) Part of Speech: Noun Gender: Masculine Definition: Valor total de los
bienes y servicios producidos en un pas en un periodo (normalmente un ano), deduciendo lo consumido en la
produccin, es decir valor total final. Definition Source: Kiser, Karin N. Diccionario Bilinge De Negocios =
Bilingual Business Dictionary. Chicago, IL: Dearborn Financial Pub., 1999. Print.

I
inflation

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Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy
Part of Speech: Noun Definition: General rise in the price index reflected therefore by a drop in the purchasing
power of money. Definition Source: Kiser, Karin N. Diccionario Bilinge De Negocios = Bilingual Business
Dictionary. Chicago, IL: Dearborn Financial Pub., 1999. Print.
Spanish inflacin Part of Speech: Noun Gender: Feminine Definition: Elevacin general del ndice de precios, y
por tanto diminucin del poder adquisitivo del dinero. Definition Source: Kiser, Karin N. Diccionario Bilinge De
Negocios = Bilingual Business Dictionary. Chicago, IL: Dearborn Financial Pub., 1999. Print.

insolvency proceedings
Part of Speech: Noun Definition: An assignment for the benefit of creditors that may also include other proceeding
intended to liquidate or rehabilitate the estate of the person involved Definition Source: "Insolvency Proceeding Law
& Legal Definition." Insolvency Proceeding Law & Legal Definition. US Legal Inc, 2015. Web. 07 Apr. 2015.
Spanish procedimiento de insolvencia Part of Speech: Noun Gender: Masculine Definition: Es un
reconocimiento y una proteccin normativa que se le hace al deudor que se ha constituido en mora y ha sufrido un
revs econmico, de poder lograr un acuerdo sobre el plan de pago con respecto a sus acreedores, y de esta manera
impedir que se adelanten procesos ejecutivos en su contra que pongan su patrimonio en mayor detrimento. Definition
Source: "Insolvencia Para Persona Natural No Comerciante." Minjusticia. Ministerio De Justicia Y Del Derecho,
2015. Web. 27 Apr. 2015.

L
liquidity
Part of Speech: Noun Definition: Situation in which excess funds are available in a company or the entire financial
system. Definition Source: Kiser, Karin N. Diccionario Bilinge De Negocios = Bilingual Business Dictionary.
Chicago, IL: Dearborn Financial Pub., 1999. Print.
Spanish liquidez Part of Speech: Noun Gender: Feminine Definition: Situacin de exceso de tesorera, tanto en una
empresa como en la totalidad del sistema financiero. Definition Source: Kiser, Karin N. Diccionario Bilinge De
Negocios = Bilingual Business Dictionary. Chicago, IL: Dearborn Financial Pub., 1999. Print.

M
market
Part of Speech: Noun Definition: Place at which products are offered for sale, normally at regular intervals where
negotiations are regulated often by established custom. Definition Source: Kiser, Karin N. Diccionario Bilinge De
Negocios = Bilingual Business Dictionary. Chicago, IL: Dearborn Financial Pub., 1999. Print.
Spanish mercado Part of Speech: Noun Gender: Masculine Definition: Lugar en el que se ofrecen productos a la
venta, normalmente con una periodicidad fijada donde existen en l unas reglas, basadas en la costumbre para
regular las negociaciones. Definition Source: Kiser, Karin N. Diccionario Bilinge De Negocios = Bilingual
Business Dictionary. Chicago, IL: Dearborn Financial Pub., 1999. Print.

P
portfolio
Part of Speech: Noun Definition: A grouping of financial assets such as stocks, bonds and cash equivalents, as well
as their mutual, exchange-traded and closed-fund counterparts.
Definition Source: "Portfolio Definition | Investopedia." Investopedia. Investopedia, 25 Nov. 2003. Web. 07 Apr.
2015.
Spanish cartera Part of Speech: Noun Gender: Feminine Definition: Valores o efectos comerciales de curso legal
que forman parte del activo de un comerciante, un banco o una sociedad. Definition Source: "Cartera." Word
Reference. WordReference.com, 2015. Web. 27 Apr. 2015.

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Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy

Q
quarter
Part of Speech: Noun Definition: A three-month period on a financial calendar that acts as a basis for the reporting
of earnings and the paying of dividends.
Definition Source: "Quarter (Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4) Definition | Investopedia." Investopedia. Investopedia, 24 Nov. 2003.
Web. 07 Apr. 2015.
Spanish trimestre Part of Speech: Noun Gender: Masculine Definition: Espacio de tres meses. Definition Source:
"Trimestre." Word Reference. WordReference.com, 2015. Web. 27 Apr. 2015.

R
remuneration
Part of Speech: Noun Definition: That which is give or which serves to pay the emolument or salary of an employee.
Definition Source: Kiser, Karin N. Diccionario Bilinge De Negocios = Bilingual Business Dictionary. Chicago, IL:
Dearborn Financial Pub., 1999. Print.
Spanish retribucin Part of Speech: Noun Gender: Feminine Definition: Lo que se da o sirve para pagar los
emolumentos o el salario de los trabajadores. Definition Source: Kiser, Karin N. Diccionario Bilinge De Negocios
= Bilingual Business Dictionary. Chicago, IL: Dearborn Financial Pub., 1999. Print.

revenue
Part of Speech: Noun Definition: Income of money into a company as a result of the sale of goods or services that are
typical of the normal operations of the company. Definition Source: Kiser, Karin N. Diccionario Bilinge De
Negocios = Bilingual Business Dictionary. Chicago, IL: Dearborn Financial Pub., 1999. Print.
Spanish ingresos Part of Speech: Noun Gender: Masculine Definition: Entradas de dinero en la empresa,
procedentes de la venta de los bienes o servicios representativos de su operacin normal. Definition Source: Kiser,
Karin N. Diccionario Bilinge De Negocios = Bilingual Business Dictionary. Chicago, IL: Dearborn Financial Pub.,
1999. Print.

S
sector
Part of Speech: Noun Definition: An area of the economy in which businesses share the same or a related product or
service or an industry or market sharing common characteristics. Definition Source: "Sector Definition ,
Investopedia." Investopedia. Investopedia, 26 Nov. 2003. Web. 07 Apr. 2015.
Spanish sector Part of Speech: Noun Gender: Masculine Definition: Cada una de las distintas actividades
econmicas o productivas. Definition Source: "Sector." Word Reference. WordReference.com, 2015. Web. 27 Apr.
2015.

Single Resolution Mechanism (SRM)

Part of Speech: Noun Definition: An EU-level system for resolving non-viable financial institutions. Definition
Source: "Single Resolution Mechanism." Consilium. European Union, 2015. Web. 27 Apr. 2015.
Spanish Mecanismo nico de Resolucin (MUR) Part of Speech: Noun Gender: Masculine Definition: Un
sistema a escala de la UE para gestionar las crisis de entidades financieras que no sean viables. Definition Source:
"Mecanismo nico De Resolucin." Consilium. European Union, 2015. Web. 27 Apr. 2015.

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Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy

Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM)

Part of Speech: Noun Definition: A new system of banking monitoring that aims to, ensure the safety and soundness
of the European banking system, increase financial integration and stability, and ensure consistency. Definition
Source: "Single Supervisory Mechanism." Banking Supervision. European Central Bank, 2015. Web. 27 Apr. 2015.
Spanish Mecanismo nico de Supervisin (MUS) Part of Speech: Noun Gender: Masculine Definition: Un
nuevo sistema de supervisin bancaria en Europea cuyos objetivos principales son: velar por la seguridad y la
solidez del sistema bancario europeo, potenciar la integracin y la estabilidad financieras en Europea, y asegurar la
coherencia. Definition Source: "El Mecanismo nico de Supervisin." Supervisin Bancaria. Banco Central
Europeo, 2015. Web. 27 Apr. 2015.

solvency
Part of Speech: Noun Definition: Capacity to pay debts upon their expiry that is measured as a ratio between current
assets and liabilities for example. Definition Source: Kiser, Karin N. Diccionario Bilinge De Negocios = Bilingual
Business Dictionary. Chicago, IL: Dearborn Financial Pub., 1999. Print.
Spanish solvencia Part of Speech: Noun Gender: Feminine Definition: Capacidad de pagar las deudas a su
vencimiento que se mide por la relacin entre activo y pasivo circulante, por ejemplo con la prueba acida. Definition
Source: Kiser, Karin N. Diccionario Bilinge De Negocios = Bilingual Business Dictionary. Chicago, IL: Dearborn
Financial Pub., 1999. Print.

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Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy

6. Translation
To maintain the formatting and overall appearance of my translation, it will begin on the next
page. I decided to translate starting with the table of contents of this section through the final
bullet point of the 2013 Summary section.

14

Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy

Financial and
Economic
Report

92
92
94

Consolidated Financial Report

General External Framework
Summary of the 2013
for Santander Group
96
Santander Group Results
102 Santander Group Balance Sheet
112
Principal
Segments or
Geographic Areas
114 Continental Europe
128 United Kingdom
131 Latin America
146 United States
149 Corporate Activities
152
Secondary
Segments or
Business
152 Commercial Banking

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Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy
155
158

Global Wholesale Banking

Asset Management and Insurance

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Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy

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Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy
92

ANNUAL REPORT
2013

Economic and Financial Report

Consolidated
Financial
Report
General External Framework
Santander Group has developed its business in an
economic climate of minimal growth with respect
to 2012, with some areas registering declining
activity for the year, but has been improving from
quarter to quarter aided by the cyclical recovery of
developed economies. The year ended with the
eurozone out of the recession since the second
quarter with the United Kingdom and the United
States demonstrating well-established recovery.
The emerging countries, with China at the head,
have maintained a solid growth despite the recent
economic downturn. In this environment, the
principal national banks have insisted that interest
rates remain low for a prolonged period of time,
which is a signal that consumer behavior will be
maintained.

asset purchases at the start of 2014, although, with

the compromise to maintain the interest rate in the
short term at the current rate level until 2015.
.

At the same time, there have been important

steps in the eurozone towards a banking union.
The Single Supervisory Mechanisms (SSM)
approval is highlighted for beginning operations
in November of 2014. The first arrangements
concerning the Banking Recovery and
Resolution Directive and the Single Resolution
Mechanism (SRM) are expected to be approved
and operating in January of 2015. All of this has
contributed to improve the conditions in the
wholesale markets, especially related to
sovereign debt, which has manifested into
strong reductions of risk premiums.
In the US, the recovery of the domestic private
demand, well-established with a housing sector
expansion, in the decline of the unemployment
rate and the capacity of financing of the banking
sector, have been the principal driving factors of
growth (GDP fourth quarter: +0.8% quarter on
quarter: +2.7% year on year). Additionally, the
recovery of the employment market situates the
growth for 2013 at 1.9%. In this scenario, and
following the agreement from Congress that
reduces the fiscal uncertainties, the Federal
Reserve (Fed) has confirmed its plan to reduce

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Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy
The economies and financial markets of Latin
America have reflected in their currency
exposure and cash flows of investment, the
change expected from the policy of injection of
liquidity of the Fed, although in a heterogeneous
way between countries. The impact is significant
following the closing of the fiscal year (overall
depreciation of emerging currencies in 2014), has
been very limited in the growth of the region,
which is maintained in line with the previous
fiscal year.

In Brazil, the GDP of the third quarter was

adjusted for a temporary spike in the second
quarter of current annual growth at 2.2%, in line
with the forecast for the fiscal year (2.3%), which
helped strengthen consumption and the
employment market that compensated for
weakened investments. The persistence of a high
inflation rate, although lower than at the start of
the year, has provoked successive increase in the
SELIC rate to 10% at the close of the fiscal year
(+275 b.p.), incrementing that will continue at
the start of 2014 (10.5% in January). This raising
of the official rate has not impeded the

depreciation of the real since May following the

first news about the Fed.
Mexico recovered in the third quarter (+0.8%
quarter on quarter; +1.3% year on year) helped by
stronger exports and an increased domestic
demand, offsetting lower momentum in the public
sector, noted a growth for 2013 of 1.2%. With
inflation goals wherein, the central bank has
focused on growth and reduced the benchmark rate
in the second half of the year to 3.50% (-50 b.p.),
while the peso has been relatively stable.
Chile promptly accelerated the growth in GDP in
the third quarter (1.3% quarter on quarter; 4.7%
year on year) through foreign trade and mining
that compensated the weakened domestic
demand. All in all, the slowdown of consumption
has continued in the fourth quarter, reducing the
growth of the economy during the fiscal year to
levels between 4.2% and 4.4%. With inflation
contained, the central bank cut the benchmark
rate by 50 b.p. to 4.5%, the first decrease since
January 2012, while the peso remained stable.
.

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ANNUAL REPORT
2013

The eurozone, out of the recession since the

second quarter, registered a moderate growth in
GDP in the third quarter (+0.1% quarter on
quarter; -0.4% year on year), helped by the fiscal
and monetary conditions, fewer restrictions, and
by the recovery of the periphery (Portugal +0.2%,
Spain +0.1%, Italy -0.1%). The growth of Germany
(+0.3%) is noteworthy and contrasts with the
decline of France (-0.1%).

With an inflation rate lower than 1%, the

European Central Bank (ECB) has reduced its
benchmark rate to 0.25% (-50 b.p. in the
year) with a forecast the keep it lowered for
an extended period of time and to continue
offering all necessary liquidity to the system.
Similarly, the anticipated refund on the part
of the ECB from the funds collected for three
years has reduced the liquidity of the area,
pushing the monetary market rate in the
short term, and contributing to the
appreciation of the euro against the dollar.
In Spain, in the third quarter, the economy
registered a rate of positive growth with respect
to the second quarter (+0.1% quarter on
quarter; -1.1% year on year), for the first time
since the beginning of 2011. The recovery of
private consumption and capital goods, which
add to the strength of exports, explain the
change in tendency. The growth of the GDP of
the fourth quarter (+0.3% quarter on quarter)
and the figures showing job creation in nonseasonal terms of the survey of the population
confirmed the end of the recession. With these
figures, the growth of the GDP for the fiscal year
would be -1.2%.
Throughout 2013, with progress in the corrections
of imbalances, the strengthening of the external
sector, the new improvements in competitiveness
due to the fall of unit labor costs, and the advance
of structural reforms, Spain as a European
governance, has permitted the loosening of the
markets with a strong reduction of the risk

premium. This tendency will continue in the start of

2014. At the close of the year, the premium over
the benchmark 10 year German bond is at 220 b.p.
(vs. 395 basis points at the end of 2012 and the
maximum of 637 basis points in July 2012).

The UK economy has maintained the force of its

activity in the fourth quarter (+0.7% quarter on
quarter; +2.8% year on year), helped by
consumption in the private sector, by
improvements in employment and lending; that
all add up to spending in the residential and
foreign sectors. The preliminary rate of growth
for 2013 is situated at 1.9%.
With inflation close to its objectives, the Bank of
England maintains its official rate without
changes. However, before the strengthening
economically, especially with consumption and
housing, the prudential supervisor has
recommended eliminating the funding for lending
program for families, keeping it for businesses,
which would be the first reduction funds from the
stimulus package. All of this has contributed to
strengthening of appreciation the pound against
the dollar at the end of the year, and to correct,
partially its depreciation against the euro.
In Poland, the growth of the GDP continued
into the third quarter (+0.6% quarter on
quarter; +1.7% year on year) with a more
stable growth, with more weight in consumption
and private investments, and with a labor
market in recovery, together with an external
sector that stayed strong. That contributed to
the strong reduction in the benchmark rate in
the first half of the fiscal year (-225 b.p. in 9
months to 2.50% in July 2013) in an
environment with contained inflation, and the
zloty depreciated against the euro in the first
half of the year. In the second half, part of its
fall had been corrected. Activity indicators for
the fourth quarter note a new acceleration,
which puts the growth of the GDP for the end of
the fiscal year near 1.5%.

EXCHANGE RATES: 1 EURO /

CURRENCY PARITY

2013

2012

Year
US Dollar
Pound
Brazilian real
Mexican peso
Chilean peso
Argentinian peso
Polish zloty

93

1,37
9
0,83

4
3,25
8
18,0

73
724,5
798,99
0
4,15
4

Year
1,327
0,849
2,852
16,93
1
656,52
47,220
4,196

1,31
9
0,81

6
2,70
4
17,1

85
631,7
296,48
7
4,07
4

1,284
0,811
2,501
16,89
4
624,46
75,830
4,182

94

ANNUAL REPORT
2013

Economic and Financial Report

2013 Summary of
Santander Group
In 2013 where the environment has changed
and become more complex in various markets in
which we operate, Santander has, with a
business model resistant in all of the phases of
the cycle, continued to generate high results
consistently.

The most important points of 2013 for

Santander are:
Strength of results. During the last few years
and despite the difficult scenario, Santander
Group has demonstrated a solid capacity to
generate recurring results, backed by the
geographic diversification and management
focused on adapting to each market. This has
permitted obtaining profits throughout every
year of the crisis; being one of the only large
banks in the world that has not posted a loss in
any quarter during the crisis.
Santander Group has attributed profits of 4,370
million euros in 2013, a growth of 90.5%
compared to 2012, largely due to the smaller
necessity for provisions
This growth has been achieved with
improvement in the basic tendencies as the year
advanced, that reflected more stable commercial
revenues, with an interest rate and commissions
that were higher in the fourth quarter, and a
declining of allowance and the cost of credit
quarter on quarter.
Continuing strength of the balance sheet
due to the higher rate of revenue. Following
the strong provisions realized in 2012 (18,806
million euros), the Group has allocated 11,073
million euros to allowances for specific
insolvencies in 2013, which permits it to
confront the new scenario of larger economic
growth from a solid position and with a healthy
balance sheet.
The effort towards provisions aligns with a
strategy of reduction of the real estate
exposure in Spain. The area of discontinued
real estate activities has reduced the balance
by 1,496 million euros and 12% over the last
year. With this, the fall since December 2008 is
30,000 million euros (-73%). Notably, the sale
of a stake in Altamira, which manages the loan
recoveries in Spain and in the
commercialization of selling and renting,
foreclosed real estate assets.
All in all, the Group has more than doubled the
coverage of its credit portfolio throughout the

crisis, and its level of coverage is higher than the

average of European Banks.

 Solid financing structure and better ratios

of liquidity for the Group.
The improvement of the position of liquidity has
been a priority objective in the strategy of the
Group in the last few years and has been
successful thanks to the capacity of collection
in the retail market of the extensive network of
offices, the extensive and diversified access to
wholesale markets through the model of the
branches and in the context of a reduced need
of lending in some markets due to
deleveraging.
This process of deleveraging in mature markets
is reflected in the reduction of credit risk in the
balance sheet.
Some ratios that reflect the improvement of
liquidity are:
At the group level, the level of net credit for
deposits closed the year at 109% (compared
to 113% in December 2012, or 150% in
December of 2008), has increased the
structural surplus of liquidity to put itself
above 150,000 million euros and the reserve
liquidity has reached 200,000 million euros.

The liquidity managed by the subsidiaries has

permitted the Group to maintain a
conservative strategy in the year,
materialized in the mid-term and long term by
22,540 million euros and 200,000 million
euros in securitizations.
Higher solvency in the group as shown by
the core capital ratio has begun to improve in
this year, for the seventh consecutive year.
The core capital ratio, in accordance with the
international standard BIS II, closed 2013 at
11.17% compared to 10.33% in 2012.
Shareholder payment. Santander has
maintained its dividend per share at .60 euros
per share, under the Santander Dividend Election
program in four quarterly payments, which allow
a yield of 10% for the year
(remuneration/average share price). With the
program, the shareholder has the possibility, if
they chose, to receive remuneration in cash or in
shares. The average level of acceptance of
realized payments in 2013 has been 87%.
Additionally, and with the goal to improve the
positioning in the actual environment, the
Group has implemented a series of initiatives
within which they can stress:

1. Adapting to the competitive Spanish

environment. The integration of Banesto and
Banif in Santander Bank, which is advancing
ahead of schedule, which will permit the
anticipation of the cost synergies. The goal is to
gain a market share in Spain, through a full
range of products and a better quality of
service.

2. The integration of Kredyt Bank in Poland is

proceeding satisfactorily and has produced
the rebranding of their offices and
technological integration.

3. In the US, where they are building the

installed capacity, and improving commercial
power, they have adopted the brand
Santander and have begun the rebranding of
the offices.

4. In consumer business, the Group and The

Corte Ingls have arrived to a strategic
agreement that Santander Consumer Finance
will acquire 51% of Financiera El

ANNUAL
REPORT 2013

95

Corte Ingls. This agreement is intended

to materialize in the first quarter of 2014.

5. The Group has signed an agreement with

the subsidiaries of Warburg Pincus and
General Atlantic to drive the global
development of Santander Asset
Management. During the operation,
Warburg Pincus and General Atlantic
together have 50% of the holding company
that integrates Santander Asset
Managements funds managed, while the
other 50% will be solely owned by
Santander Group.

6. Sale of a stake of Altamira.

All of these operations allow Santander

Group to close the year with a solid position to
take advantage the opportunities for growth in
the coming years.

Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy

7. Challenges
The main challenge that I faced during this entire process of translation was time

management. While I constantly updated my project workflow throughout the process, I

sometimes fell behind and had to work a bit harder to meet my deadlines. Specific challenges
I faced within my actual translation were for the most part with acronyms and abbreviations.
For example,
English
Gross domestic product (GDP)
Basis point (b.p.)
Single Supervisory Mechanism

(SSM)

Spanish
Product interior bruto (PIB)
Punto bsico (p.b.)
Mecanismo nico de Supervisin

(MUS)
Single Resolution Mechanism

Mecanismo nico de Resolucin

(SRM)
(MUR)

All of the following terms or words that were included in the original annual report for
Santander Group needed extensive research to find the English speaking equivalent to the
abbreviation or acronym.

24

Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy

8. Takeaways

The major takeaway that I have from my capstone project this semester is that time

management is the most important part when taking on a translation project. From the outset,
setting and meeting deadlines is one of the most important factors when undertaking a translation
project. Another takeaway I would add is that asking for outside help from a subject specialist is
invaluable in the translation process. Luckily I had the luxury of having my friends dad who
works in the banking industry and sees annual reports come across his desk every year. This
helped immensely with the industry norms how information is presented.

25

Patrick Daley
Capstone Project Spring 2015
Instructor: Elizabeth Lowe McCoy

9. Bibliography
Angeloni,

Ignazio. "Savings Banks in the European Banking Landscape." Banking

Supervision.
European Central Bank, 18 June 2014. Web. 10 Mar. 2015.

Annual Report 2013. N.p.: J.P. Morgan Chase, 2014. PDF.

Annual Report. Madrid: Banco De Espana, 2013. PDF.

"Defining Technical Communication." Defining Technical Communication.

Society for

Technical Communication, 2015. Web. 29 Apr. 2015.

EVOLUCIN

Banco

ECONMICA Y FINANCIERA DE LA ECONOMA ESPAOLA. Madrid:

De Espana, 2013. PDF.

Informe Coporativo Integrado. Barcelona: Caixa Bank, 2013. PDF.

Informe Economico Y Financiero. Madrid: Grupo Santander, Mar. 2014. PDF.

Integrated Coporate Report. Barcelona: Caixa Bank, 2013. PDF.

Kiser, Karin N. Diccionario Bilingue De Negocios = Bilingual Business Dictionary.

Chicago,

IL: Dearborn Financial Pub., 1999. Print.

"Mission

Statement of the SSM." Banking Supervision. European Central Bank, 2015. Web.
10 Mar. 2015.

"Welcome

to the Purdue OWL." Purdue OWL: Audience Analysis. Purdue OWL, The Writing
Lab, Purdue University, 2015. Web. 29 Apr. 2015.

"Welcome

to the Purdue OWL." Purdue OWL: HATS: A Design Procedure for Routine
Business Documents. Purdue OWL, The Writing Lab, Purdue University, 2015. Web. 24
Feb.
2015.

Wikipedia.

Wikimedia Foundation, 2015. Web. 06 May 2015.

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