HSBC to Shed up to 300 Staff from the UK Offices

Global lender HSBC has started to restructure its commercial banking business in the United Kingdom, which will result in around 300 job losses.

As reported by Reuters on Wednesday, this is a part of the global restructuring program announced by the bank earlier this year. The measures will be taken to reduce the bank’s operational cost.

The London-headquartered bank first proposed the restructuring plan in February, but cemented it in June due to the massive losses incurred by it amid the economic effect of the ongoing pandemic.

The restructuring process would result in the shortening of around 35,000 staff from its offices across the globe. It would additionally force the bank to merge its private banking unit and wealth business, cut back its European equity business, and reduce its US retail network.

COVID-19 Hit Banking Very Hard

In an earlier statement, HSBC CEO, Noel Quinn said that the harsh steps are necessary, and the bank cannot delay them ‘indefinitely’. Weak economic forecasts for the Asian countries, where most of the HSBC business lies, further forced the bank to speed up the restructuring.

The commercial banking business of the bank focuses on offering loans and other banking services to small and medium-sized businesses. In August, the bank warned that its loan losses for the year could touch $13 billion.

Apart from the UK offices, HSBC is trimming the headcounts in France. It has plans to cut 255 jobs in the country, nearly 37 percent of the full-time headcount in its French global banking and markets unit, by the end of 2021.

HSBC is not alone in the banking industry to plan such a major reduction in its workforce. Denmark’s Danske Bank is also planning to cut 1,600 jobs in the next six to twelve months for reducing its operational costs.