FORTUNE's annual ranking of America's leading businesswomen
Ana Botín Rank: 8 (2004 rank: 6)
Company: Banco Banesto Based in: Spain Title: Executive Chairman
Botín, 45, heads the Spanish commercial banking operation of Banco Santander, Europe's fourth-largest bank. She is being groomed to take over Santander, which recently acquired Britain's Abbey, when her father retires. But for now she's preoccupied with Banco Banesto, transforming the once unprofitable deadweight into a moneymaking machine. She has teamed up with Microsoft to develop banking software for small businesses and last year increased revenue by 9%, to $3 billion. This year she's on target to grow her top line by 20%.
From the November 14, 2005 issue
Highest pay
These women are among the highest paid in corporate America. All of them are employed by companies with over $1 billion in sales that filed proxies by September 1, 2005.
Newcomer Charlene Begley heads up GE's plastics division and is the youngest of this group at age 39. She bumped last year's youngest gun, Citigroup CFO Sallie Krawcheck, now 40. But, on average, the Power 50 are in their late 40s.
