8-K

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 205490

FORM8-K

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): March15, 2006

SOVEREIGN BANCORP, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Pennsylvania	001-16581	23-2453088
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation)	(Commission File Number)	(IRS Employer Ident. No.)

1500 Market Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	19102
(Address of principal executive offices)	(Zip Code)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (215) 557-4630

N/A

(Former name or former address, if changed since last report.)

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:

o Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act

o Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act

o Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act

o Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act

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Item 8.01 Other Events.

On March 15, 2006, Sovereign Bancorp, Inc. (the “Company”) issued a press release to announce that on March 15, 2006, its Board of Directors declared a cash dividend increase of 33% and a 5% stock dividend on the Company’s common stock.

The press release, attached as Exhibit 99.1 hereto, is incorporated herein by reference.

Item 9.01. Financial Statements and Exhibits.

(a) Not Applicable.

(b) Not Applicable.

(c) Not Applicable.

(d) Exhibits. The following exhibit is furnished herewith:

99.1 Press Release, dated March 15, 2006, of Sovereign Bancorp, Inc.

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

	SOVEREIGN BANCORP, INC.
	/s/Stacey V. Weikel
Dated: March 16, 2006	Stacey V. Weikel Senior Vice President

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EXHIBIT INDEX

Exhibit

Number

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99.1 Press Release, dated March 15, 2006, of Sovereign Bancorp, Inc.

EX-99.1

Sovereign Increases Cash Dividend by 33%

and Announces 5% Stock Dividend

PHILADELPHIA, PA... Sovereign Bancorp, Inc. (“Sovereign”) (NYSE:SOV),parent company of Sovereign Bank, announced today that its Board of Directors has declared a cash dividend increase of 33% on its common stock. The increase will result in a quarterly cash dividend of $.08 per share and an annual cash dividend of $.32 per share. The cash dividend is payable on May 15, 2006 to shareholders of record on May 1, 2006. Additionally, Sovereign announced a 5% stock dividend, which will be distributed on May 22, 2006 to shareholders of record on May 1, 2006. The newly issued shares will be issued in book form and are not eligible for the cash dividend payable on May 15, 2006; however, they will be eligible for the anticipated cash dividend to be declared in June.

“These actions taken by our Board of Directors are a reflection of the financial strength of our company and are consistent with our previous commitment to shareholders to increase our dividend over time. Our cash dividend has more than doubled over the past twelve months resulting in an annual dividend yield, after giving affect to this increase, of approximately 1.5%. We will analyze our cash dividend again in another six months or so for possible further increases and also consider stock dividends in future years as well,” stated Jay S. Sidhu, Sovereign’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.

Despite this dividend increase and stock dividend, Sovereign still maintains its capital flexibility for 2007 and beyond. Once its pending acquisition of Independence Community Bank Corp. is completed, Sovereign will be generating in excess of $1 billion of tangible capital per year. As early as mid-2007, Sovereign will have the capability to repurchase 5% or more of its shares annually as long as market conditions dictate this strategy as the best use of capital.

“These most recent steps are closely tied with our strategy of building a better bank for our shareholders, and we are pleased that our financial condition is strong enough to allow our shareholders to benefit from our success,” concluded Sidhu.

In addition to the common stock cash dividend, a dividend payment of $0.546875 per shareis payable on March 31, 2006 on Sovereign’s Preferred Securities issued by Sovereign Capital Trust III (NYSE:SOVPRA) to holders of record on March 30, 2006.

Sovereign Bancorp, Inc., (“Sovereign”) (NYSE: SOV), is the parent company of Sovereign Bank, a $64 billion financial institution with more than 650 community banking offices, over 1,000 ATMs and approximately 10,000 team members with principal markets in the Northeast United States. Sovereign offers a broad array of financial services and products including retail banking, business and corporate banking, cash management, capital markets, wealth management and insurance. Sovereign is the 18th largest banking institution in the United States. For more information on Sovereign Bank, visit <http://www.sovereignbank.com> or call 1-877-SOV-BANK.

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Note: “Safe Harbor” Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Statements in this press release regarding Sovereign Bancorp’s business which are not historical facts are “forward-looking statements” that involve risks and uncertainties. For a discussion of such risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual future events to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, see “Forward-Looking Statements” in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the most recently ended fiscal year.