ANA PATRICIA BOTIN

I want the best people, not just on the banking side but on innovation and technology.

I didn't join a bank because my father worked in a bank or because I thought I was going to be a banker or because I thought I was going to be where I am today.

It has to be convenient. You have to be able to bank with me anytime.

I think of digital as a means to an end: How do I service and get more loyal customers, how do I achieve operational excellence, and how do I change my culture?

We need to change how we run banks. We need to change the culture. If we get it right, we can have a huge impact.

We are the most British of Britain's banks. This always gets a chuckle; I don't why.

Other things equal, we should give a chance to women. That's what I try to do.

I have a very, very difficult job.

Everybody has their own style.

Discretion is the most important thing for a banker. That is the philosophy of the family... I mean, of the bank.

It's true that I'm always happy to walk away.

We didn't invent gunpowder. What we did was take things that were there and put them together in a way that works.

You are not going to get married through technology. You are not going to buy a house through technology.

We need critical mass. We need people, not just one or two. We need a lot of them.

Being different is critical.

I am confident that our experience, our scale, our intimate knowledge of the needs of our customers put us on the front line of economic and social progress.

It is going to sound cliched, but my husband has been incredibly helpful.

When times are tough, we tend to outperform as margins increase.

I started at the bottom. Nobody has given me anything.

For me, my husband gives me advice all the time - he's been very supportive.

I wanted to be a journalist. I used to write articles at university about politics.

The thing that really sticks - and when you talk to entrepreneurs, they say the same - is just thinking about the next day, the next week.

Profit, wealth creation, competition - these are not dirty words but the lifeblood of a dynamic economy.

I'm very happy in the U.K.; I love it here. Even the weather - I'm from a place where it rains almost as much.

I think cash will be around for a long time.