This archive report was first published on 7 October 2019.
HSBC, the London-headquartered banking giant, is set to cut up to 10,000 jobs, a move that comes just weeks after the resignation of its chief executive and the announcement of 4,000 job cuts citing a weak global outlook.
According to a report by the Financial Times, the latest job losses, mostly in high-paid roles, are part of a fresh cost-cutting drive by interim boss Noel Quinn as the bank struggles to adjust to falling interest rates, Brexit, and the long-running trade war.
"We've known for years that we need to do something about our cost base, the largest component of which is people -- now we are finally grasping the nettle," an unnamed source was quoted as saying by the Financial Times.
The bank's reported first-half net profit rose 18.6 percent on-year to $8.5 billion, but it is due to report third-quarter earnings at the end of October.
HSBC's latest cost-cutting drive is in line with other lenders who are battling global headwinds, including US banks JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo, which have lowered their 2019 profit forecasts tied to interest rates.
Other banks, such as Deutsche Bank and France's Societe Generale, have also announced significant job cuts in recent months.
