HSBC to slash 35,000 jobs worldwide in “deepest restructuring” exercise
- Daniel Teo
- Topics: Home Page - News, Job Cuts, News, Restructuring
HSBC is set to cut 35,000 jobs globally over the next three years in its “deepest restructuring” exercise to cut costs amidst plunging profits and the COVID-19 outbreak.
Newly confirmed CEO Noel Quinn announced the bank’s plan to reduce US$4.5bn worth of costs which would involve slashing about 15% of the group’s global workforce.
“We would expect our headcount to decrease from the current level of 235,000 to be closer to 200,000 in 2022,” Quinn said.
“This represents one of the deepest restructuring and simplification programmes in our history.”
He also added that the restructuring, one of the largest undertaken by a blue-chip lender for more than a decade, will be partly managed through natural attrition as people leave the bank.
HSBC, which operates in 64 countries, said it would merge its private banking and wealth businesses, axe European stock trading and cut US retail branches.
Instead, it will ramp up investments in Asia which makes up the bulk of its profits and where it is betting on China’s wealthy to boost profitability.
