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LONDON. — HSBC’s red and white hexagonal logo is to disappear from UK high streets as the bank embarks on a restructuring that will involve up to 25 000 job cuts around the world — including as many as 8 000 in the UK — and hundreds of branch closures.
Stuart Gulliver, chief executive of Britain’s biggest bank, said customers and staff would be consulted on a new name for the 1 000-strong branch network in the UK. But he said it was too soon to say whether HSBC would retain ownership of the UK operations.
Since taking the helm in 2011, Gulliver has cut the workforce to 257 000 from 296 000.
The number of staff is now on course to hit 208 000 as he signalled another wave of reductions to turn the bank’s focus towards Asian markets and adopt digital technology.
Around 8 000 roles are at risk in the UK where 48 000 are employed in total, a move that infuriated unions. “After all the scandals of recent years, frontline staff have suffered time and time again as they are forced to pay for the mistakes of others with their jobs, their terms and conditions and their reputation,” said Dominic Hook, Unite’s national officer for finance. — The Guardian.
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