Santander Holdings USA, Inc. ("Santander US") announced that David McClelland has been named Head of the Santander US Auto business, effective today. McClelland will be responsible for executing on the company's Auto growth strategy, enhancing dealer and customer experiences, and managing manufacturer (OEM) relationships. In this capacity, he succeeds Bruce Jackson, who announced his retirement from the company.
McClelland was appointed last year to lead Santander's global auto partnerships with OEMs, bringing over 20 years of auto finance industry experience to Santander. In addition to his primary role leading Santander's US Auto business, he will also have responsibility for leading Santander's Auto businesses in Canada and Mexico, and for continuing to advance strategic global OEM partnerships. McClelland will report to Santander US CEO and President Christiana Riley and Nitin Prabhu, Senior Executive Vice-President of Banco Santander ("Santander") and Global Head of the Digital Consumer Bank.
Before joining Santander, McClelland was Vice President Strategy and Partnerships for Ford Motor Company. Prior to that, he served as CEO of Ford Motor Credit Company, where he led a global organization of more than 6,000 employees and managed a $146 billion balance sheet.
"With David's appointment, we are well positioned for the continued growth and success of our Auto franchise in the U.S.," Christiana Riley said. "Throughout his career, he has built and executed strategies that have delivered sustainable growth, operational discipline, and meaningful value creation, with a strong focus on customers and culture."
The United States remains a strategically and financially important market for Santander. Its operations in the United States are comprised of five growing, globally connected and profitable businesses, including retail banking and a top-10 auto lender by market share*. In late 2024, Santander launched a national, digital retail banking platform in the United States under the Openbank brand. Deposits from the platform are providing lower-cost funds to support auto lending and fuel profitable growth for the franchise.
*As of December 31, 2025, according to J.D. Power Market Share Report.
Santander Holdings USA, Inc. (SHUSA) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Madrid-based Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN) (Santander), recognized as one of the world's most admired companies by Fortune Magazine in 2025, with approximately 178 million customers in the U.S., Europe and Latin America. As the intermediate holding company for Santander's U.S. businesses, SHUSA is the parent company of financial companies with more than 11,300 employees, 4.5 million customers, and assets of $165 billion in the fiscal year ended 2024. These include Santander Bank, N.A., Santander Consumer USA Holdings Inc., Banco Santander International, Santander Securities LLC, Santander US Capital Markets LLC and several other subsidiaries. Santander US is recognized as a top 10 auto lender as well as a top 10 multifamily bank lender and servicer and has a growing wealth management business. For more information about Santander US, please visit www.santanderus.com.
Openbank in the United States is a division of Santander Bank, N.A., which is a Member of the FDIC and a wholly owned subsidiary of Banco Santander, S.A.
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Andrew Simonelli
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