UBS prepares to axe jobs in savings push
UBS is planning a round of job cuts that could see thousands of people kicked out of its investment banking arm as it struggles to deal with a downturn in business, it was reported last night.
The Swiss bank’s top management has been locked in negotiations and will begin to notify staff of the job losses from today, the Wall Street Journal reported, with further rounds of cuts to follow. The cuts are said to extend evenly across the bank’s global operations, including London where UBS employs around 6,500 people.
UBS did not comment last night, but is expected to outline a drastic restructuring operation when it announces third-quarter results next Tuesday.
Chief executive Sergio Ermotti said last year he is targeting moves to bring staff levels down to 16,000, which is just under 400 less than the most recently-revealed levels. However, developments over the last year, including Facebook’s disastrous initial public offering pushed UBS into a $356m (£223m) loss in the quarter to July.
At its peak in 2007, UBS employed more than 24,000 staff, but the threat of tougher banking regulation and worse economic conditions have hit its bottom line.