Spanish bank Santander will continue to hire additional staff in the United States as part of its strategy to further grow its corporate banking business in this market, the bank's CEO Hector Grisi said Wednesday.

The Spanish bank has been hiring staff from ailing Credit Suisse as part of these efforts. Reuters reported in July that Santander planned to hire about 150 bankers, mainly in the United States.

"When we hit the cap, we're going to keep hiring a little bit, mostly junior bankers. We will get to 200 bankers," Grisi told a news conference after Santander reported record net profit for 2023 of more than 11 billion euros.

The bank is trying to double its investment banking business in the United States, where its subsidiary, including its consumer unit, has been hit by loan losses and higher funding costs.

Net profit in this market fell 77% year-on-year in the fourth quarter due to a rise in provisions of around 30% in the same period and higher costs to expand the business there.

(Reporting by Jesús Aguado; additional reporting by Emma Pinedo; edited in Spanish by Benjamín Mejías Valencia)