Santander is to buy TSB for £2.9bn, creating the UK’s third biggest bank, in a move that threatens to wipe out one of the UK’s oldest banking brands from the High Street.

Once completed, the combined bank will have a total of nearly 28 million customers and will be the third largest UK bank in terms of personal current account deposits, behind Lloyds and NatWest

Santander UK has acquired high street bank TSB in a landmark £2.9bn deal that will significantly beef up the lender’s market share. The bank’s bid for an all-cash takeover from its Spanish peer Banco Sabadell values TSB at five times its expected 2026 net income.