Barclays hit by charge on restructuring
BARCLAYS yesterday updated the market on the broad-ranging reorganisation of its group structure, admitting it will take a £100m charge in the first half of 2010 as a result of the restructuring of Barclays Corporate.
The £100m charge reflects redundancy and other costs from Barclays’ exit from its Bank Akita retail arm in Indonesia, a deal brokered two years ago by the bank’s former head of retail and commercial banking Fritz Seegers.
Barclays said it will continue to operate its wholesale operations in Indonesia.
As part of the wider reshuffle, the bank has brought together its profit-driving investment banking unit Barclays Capital with its corporate business under a single umbrella, corporate and investment banking and wealth management (CIBWM).
The CIBWM division also encompasses Barclays Wealth and the bank’s investment management activities, which oversee the group’s retained 19.9 per cent stake in BlackRock following the sale of Barclays Global Investors last year.
The second prong of the new-look Barclays comes under the global retail banking brand, comprising its UK and western Europe retail banking operations, Barclaycard and Barclays Africa.
The final arm is Barclays’ majority stake in the Absa Group, one of South Africa’s largest consumer banking groups, which it acquired in 2005.