StanChart to cut 10
percent of corporate, institutional banking staff:
sources
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[November 28, 2016]
By Anshuman Daga and Sumeet Chatterjee
SINGAPORE/HONG
KONG (Reuters) - Standard Chartered is set to cut about a tenth of its
global corporate and institutional banking headcount, sources with
direct knowledge of the matter said on Monday, as the bank steps up an
aggressive drive to cut costs.
Chief Executive Bill Winters this month branded the bank's income and
profit unacceptable, as below-forecast third-quarter results underlined
the challenges facing his overhaul.
The job cuts will be rolled out beginning this week across all the major
business centers starting with Singapore and Hong Kong, one of the
sources told Reuters. All the sources declined to be named because they
were not authorized to speak to the media.
"We are making our corporate and institutional banking division more
efficient," a Standard Chartered spokesman said, without revealing how
many jobs are to be axed.
"Removing duplication in roles and managing our costs to protect planned
investments in technology and people means that a small number of
existing roles will be impacted."
Former JPMorgan <JPM.N> investment banker Winters has already moved to
close the stock trading business and raise $5.1 billion in capital.
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These efforts have paid off for Standard Chartered's bottom line, and
its third quarter result marked a second consecutive quarter of profit
after it swung to an annual loss for 2015, when it was hit by the costs
of revamping its management team.
Winter also said in November last year the bank would cut 15,000 jobs.
It was not immediately clear whether the cuts in corporate and
institutional banking formed part of that.
The latest headcount cut marks the first major move by former senior
HSBC banker Simon Cooper who joined in April as chief executive of
corporate and institutional banking.
Cooper has been working to overhaul and streamline the structure of the
corporate and institutional banking division, the largest unit of the
bank accounting for more than 46 percent of its operating income in the
six months ended June.
It was not immediately clear how many of the global total of 84,477
employees at the British bank at the end of June were in that division.
Returns from the bank's corporate and institutional banking, which
includes corporate finance and transaction banking, were hurt by loan
impairments and high expenses, Standard Chartered said in last year's
annual report.
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![](../images/112816pics/busine41.jpg)
A woman walks down the stairs of the Standard Chartered headquarters
in Hong Kong October 13, 2010. REUTERS/Bobby Yip/File Photo
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In the quarter ended September, Standard Chartered corporate and
institutional banking income dropped 7.5 percent from the year-ago
period to $1.6 billion, pulling the bank's total operating income down
nearly 6 percent.
Separately, the bank said Ajay Kanwal would step down from his role as
regional CEO for ASEAN and South Asia with immediate effect. Anna Marrs,
CEO of commercial and private banking, will add the role to her existing
position.
In a statement issued by Standard Chartered, Kanwal, who had been with
the bank since 1992, said he had resigned after he failed to disclose
his past personal investments outside the bank.
"Though I do not own these investments any more, as a senior leader my
actions should be beyond reproach. Hence with regret I have decided to
tender my resignation," he said.
Kanwal, whose senior roles at Standard Chartered included regional
CEO for North East Asia and CEO for Taiwan, could not be immediately
reached for comment by Reuters.
(Reporting by Anshuman Daga and Sumeet Chatterjee; Additional reporting
by Lawrence White in London; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman/Ruth
Pitchford)
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