Hunton & Williams Represents Banco Santander Central Hispano in Its Acquisition of the Royal Bank of Scotland's Coutts Group Latin American Private Banking Division

Business Wire, May 19, 2003

Business Editors/Legal Writers

MIAMI--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 19, 2003

Hunton & Williams announced today that it represented Banco Santander Central Hispano in its acquisition of the Miami-based Latin American private banking operations of the Coutts Group, the international private banking arm of The Royal Bank of Scotland Group. Coutts' Latin America unit manages $2.6 billion in assets. The team representing Banco Santander Central Hispano was lead by Hunton & Williams partners Fernando Alonso and Roberto Pupo.

Banco Santander Central Hispano is the largest financial group in Spain and in Latin America, and is the second largest bank in the Euro Zone by market capitalization. Through its International Private Banking Unit, Banco Santander Central Hispano has $25 billion under management globally.

"Banco Santander Central Hispano is one of the most highly regarded private banking organizations in Latin America," said Hunton & Williams partner Fernando Alonso. "This solidifies their leadership position in the industry and further confirms their commitment to the region." The transaction is subject to regulatory approval and is expected to be completed within three months. The premium paid by Banco Santander Central Hispano will be approximately $75 million.

Hunton & Williams has one of the largest and most experienced Latin American practices among any law firm in the world. Its Latin America practice group consists of more than 45 attorneys and consultants who have a long history in the region representing numerous types of clients, ranging from some of the world's largest financial institutions and multinational corporations, to local governments and agencies, and prominent Latin American families. The Latin America Practice Group has handled matters in every Latin American and major Caribbean country.

About Hunton & Williams

Hunton & Williams provides legal services to corporations, financial institutions, governments and individuals as well as a broad array of other entities. Since its establishment in 1901, Hunton & Williams has grown to more than 850 attorneys serving clients in 80 countries from 17 offices around the world. While Hunton & Williams' practice has a particular emphasis on corporate transactions, corporate and structured finance, energy and environmental law, governmental relations and commercial litigation, the firm's depth and breadth of experience extends to more than 50 separate practice areas.