Banks continue to slim down balance sheets Santander (SAN.US) sells $10B loan portfolio to Blackstone (BX.US)

Blackstone (BX.US) has bought a $1bn equity stake in a portfolio of infrastructure loans from Santander (SAN.US), according to a statement.The portfolio consists of loans financing digital infrastructure such as data centres, as well as renewable energy and transportation, among other sectors.Robert Horn, global head of infrastructure and asset credit at Blackstone, said in a statement that the deal “fits our strategy of partnering with leading financial institutions to provide large-scale, long-term, efficient solutions to support their capital objectives.”Santander has begun efforts to improve its capital return. The Spanish bank is also marketing a significant risk transfer related to more than €20bn of loans in its global business, including in the US, Germany, the UK and Mexico.Jose Garcia Cantera, the bank’s chief financial officer, said in a conference call on October 29 that it had moved nearly €40bn of risk-weighted assets off its balance sheet in the first nine months of the year, compared with about €30bn for the whole of 2023.Private debt transferSantander’s global head of private debt mobilisation, Marcel Pati o, said the bank was seeking to streamline its balance sheet while supporting further development as a “leading adviser and arranger in the structured finance space”.Although banks still dominate most areas of the infrastructure credit industry, regulation has made it more expensive for them to hold such assets on their balance sheets, opening a window for private capital companies such as Blackstone to hold loans issued by banks.Other banks are also selling infrastructure loans. ABN AMRO is reported to be selling a portfolio of about €3bn of infrastructure loans.