'Don't worry, your money's safe with us' – that's what Santander UK (the British arm of the Spanish-owned bank) has effectively told us here at IBTIMES UK. If you're worried about the actions of one of the top credit ratings agency, Moody's last month: downgrading the bank we all used to know as 'Abbey' a couple of notches, then don't be!

In the UK, Santander looks after £233bn funds for its 26.7m customers. The key thing here is the British arm is a subsidiary, and not a branch, which means it's pretty much independent and governed by rules set by the Financial Services Authority. That means the bank has - to quote an FSA spokeswoman – 'full control over its resources…would stand alone if something happened to the parent' and that it would be 'completely autonomous'. Your money is protected to the tune of £85,000, should any bank fail and you stand to lose money.

So according to Santander UK, if you bank with them here then Spain's financial turmoil shouldn't have any impact on British customers' savings, and you can keep an eye on the situation from afar without too much worry.

Written and Presented by Marverine Cole