The Board of Directors of Santander Santiago Proposes to Retain 35% of 2005 Earnings to Finance Loan Growth and Investments

SANTIAGO, Chile, March 28 /PRNewswire/ --

- In the Annual Shareholder Meeting to Be Held on April 25, 2006, A Dividend Equivalent to 65% of 2005 Earnings, Equivalent to Ch$155,811 Million (Ch$0.83 per Share), Will Be Proposed

- Retained Earnings Will Be Used to Finance Strong Growth in Retail Banking and Further Investments to Increase the Levels of Bank Penetration by Expanding the Branch Network

The Board of Directors of Banco Santander Santiago (NYSE: SAN) has summoned a General Shareholders' Meeting for April 25, 2006. In the meeting agenda, the Board is proposing a dividend of Ch$155,811 million (Ch$0.83 per share[1]) equivalent to 65% of 2005 earnings, which totaled Ch$239,710 million (Ch$1.27 per share). The Board of Directors is proposing to retain 35% of 2005 net income in order to finance commercial growth and investments in 2006 and to maintain a solid capital base.

According to the CEO of the Bank, Oscar von Chrismar, the Bank expects to "continue to grow at a rapid pace with strong growth in loans to individuals and small and mid-sized companies, through important increases in consumer loans, credit cards, commercial loans, mortgage lending, leasing and factoring. At the same time, we will continue to place strong emphasis on our efforts to increase bank penetration levels through our Santander Banefe banking division, which has one million clients, including a specialized micro-business financing unit, where growth is expected to reach 30% in 2006. The Bank also expects to continue to increase its branch and automatic teller network at a rapid pace in 2006."

[1] Using the Observed exchange rate of March 28, 2006, of Ch$535.00 per U.S. dollar, the proposed dividend per ADR would be US$1.61. The actual dividend per ADR to be paid, if this proposal is approved by shareholders, will depend on the exchange rate on the payment date.

Institutional Background

As per latest public records published by the Superintendency of Banks for December 2005, Banco Santander Santiago was the largest bank in Chile in terms of loans and deposits. The Bank has the highest credit ratings among all non-publicly owned Latin American companies with an A rating from Standard and Poor's, A by Fitch and a Baa1 rating from Moody's, which are the same ratings assigned to the Republic of Chile. The stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: SAN) and the Santiago Stock Exchange (SSE: Bsantander). The Bank's main shareholder is Banco Santander Central Hispano, S.A., which directly and indirectly owns 83.94% of Banco Santander Santiago.

Banco Santander Central Hispano

Santander (SAN.MC, STD.N) is the largest bank in the Euro Zone by market capitalization and one of the largest worldwide. Founded in 1857, Santander has 809,000 million euros in assets and 961,000 million euros in managed funds, over 66 million customers, 129,000 employees, 10,200 offices and a presence in 40 countries. It is the largest financial group in Spain and Latin America, and is a major player elsewhere in Europe, including the United Kingdom through its Abbey subsidiary, and Portugal, where it is the third largest banking group. Through Santander Consumer Finance, it also operates a leading consumer finance franchise in Germany, Italy, Spain and nine other European countries. As of December 2005, Santander recorded 6,220 million euros in net attributable profits, 72.5% more than in the previous year.

In Latin America, Santander manages over US$190 billion in business volumes (loans, deposits, mutual funds and pension funds) through 4,100 offices. As of December 2005, Santander recorded in Latin America a net attributable income of US$2.2 billion, 21% higher than the prior year.

Contact Information Robert Moreno Manager Investor Relations Department Banco Santander Santiago Tel: +562-320-8284 Fax: +562-671-6554 Email: rmorenoh@santandersantiago.cl Website: http://www.santandersantiago.cl

Web site: http://www.santandersantiago.cl