HSBC to cut global headcount by up to 50,000

10 June 2015 02:36 am

AFP: Scandal-hit bank HSBC said yesterday it would cut its global headcount by up to 50,000 as part of a restructuring that entails its withdrawal from Brazil and Turkey, while it also mulls abandoning London as its headquarters. 
The Asia-focused lender added in a statement that it intended to save up to US $5 billion (4.4 billion euros) in annual costs within two and a half years as it seeks to boost profitability.
“HSBC is now undertaking a significant reshaping of its business portfolio,” said the bank, which this year marks its 150th anniversary.
“It is redeploying resources to capture expected future growth opportunities and adapting to structural changes in the operating climate.”
The statement did not mention extensive job cuts, the details of which were buried in an accompanying report. HSBC said there would be a 10 percent reduction in jobs, with between 22,000 and 25,000 classified under “transformation savings”.
A further 25,000 jobs would be lost with the sale of operations in Turkey and Brazil.
“We recognise that the world has changed and we need to change with it,” said Chief Executive Stuart Gulliver.
“That is why we are outlining ... actions that will further transform our organisation.”
Gulliver also confirmed the job losses would include between 7,000 and 8,000 positions in Britain—where its retail bank will be rebranded and relocated from London to Birmingham, central England, by 2019.
The overhaul is the latest in a series of swingeing cuts under Gulliver, who joined at the beginning of 2011. Staff numbers have dropped from 295,000 in 2010 and by 2017 there will be 208,000 remaining.