Santander and Webster Bank sketched out a second layer of management Monday, with roles set to take effect once the $12.3 billion combination between the lenders is complete.

Chris Motl, Webster’s head of commercial banking, will lead the combined bank’s commercial-banking businesses, according to a Webster document confirming the roles.

That means Michael Lee, head of U.S. commercial banking for Santander, will retire. His day-to-day management responsibilities will end June 30, but he’ll continue to represent Santander on trade associations through the end of the year, the Spanish bank said in a note seen by American Banker.

Jason Mock, Santander U.S.’s head of retail distribution, will lead the combined bank’s retail-banking division, the banks said.

James Griffin, Webster’s head of consumer banking, will serve under Mock as head of national retail distribution and consumer lending. In that role, Griffin will lead the banks’ network of more than 500 branches and continue to drive the growth of interSYNC, the rebranded digital deposit-gathering platform once called interLINK.

Drew Burchard, Santander U.S.’s head of product and platforms, will be named the combined bank’s head of digital banking.

That means Swati Bhatia, who has led Santander’s Openbank and the Spanish lender’s U.S. retail bank since 2024, is out. Bhatia, who once led Goldman Sachs’ Marcus, will leave the bank June 30, Santander said in a note.

In a memo, Santander’s U.S. chief, Christiana Riley, lauded Bhatia, noting she made "a significant and lasting impact" on Openbank, which amassed $6 billion in deposits over its first year.

Not every unit will see change at the top. Some areas where Santander’s experience outpaces Webster’s will continue to be led by Santander executives. 

David Hermer, Santander’s U.S. head of corporate and investment banking, will lead the CIB at the combined institution, the banks said.

Luis Bermudez, Santander’s U.S. head of private banking, will lead the combined bank’s private-banking business line, the lenders said.

David McClelland, Santander’s U.S. head of auto finance, will lead the combined bank’s mobility finance unit.

Likewise, Webster has specialties beyond Santander’s experience – including healthcare banking. Chad Wilkins, Webster’s head of HSA Bank, will be the combine bank’s head of healthcare financial services, the banks said.  

When the banks announced in February that Santander would acquire Webster, they named several top-level leaders: While Riley will remain the Spanish lender’s top U.S. executive, Webster CEO John Ciulla will become the CEO of Santander Bank, N.A., into which all of Webster’s businesses will be integrated.

Meanwhile, Luis Massiani, Webster’s president and chief operating officer, will become COO of both Santander Holdings USA and Santander Bank, and lead the integration, reporting to both Riley and Ciulla.

In its statement, Webster called this week’s appointments “an important step forward in our integration,” which is expected to close in the third quarter.

Leadership appointments for support functions will be shared once decisions are finalized in the coming weeks, the bank said.