The trend of job cuts in the banking sector persists, with Standard Chartered becoming the latest institution to follow suit. This move comes in the wake of similar actions from Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase. Standard Chartered is reportedly planning job cuts across its branches in Singapore, London, and Hong Kong in a bid to implement a cost-saving strategy. The bank’s objective is to achieve savings of more than US$1 billion by 2024.
As reported by Bloomberg, Standard Chartered has initiated the process of trimming roles in its middle-office functions over the past few weeks. This has chiefly impacted departments like human resources and digital transformation in Asia. According to the report, the layoffs could affect over 100 employees.
A representative from Standard Chartered disclosed to Reuters that the layoffs are a routine business activity. The bank continually evaluates its staffing needs across different departments and adjusts as necessary. Despite the layoffs, Standard Chartered has continued to show impressive growth, particularly in Asia.
Based on its Q1 2023 financial report, Standard Chartered witnessed a substantial 21% surge in its revenues from Asia. The bank’s pre-tax profits from January to March amounted to US$1.81 billion, surpassing the previous year’s US$1.49 billion. Furthermore, these earnings also exceeded the average estimate of US$1.43 billion projected by 14 analysts.
In a push towards financial innovation, Standard Chartered collaborated with the Singapore FinTech Association (SFA) in May. The partnership resulted in the publication of the ‘Deepening Sustainability with DLT‘ paper. This insightful document discusses the potential of Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) in enhancing payment transparency across supply chains. The paper advances the understanding of this complex topic and its implications for corporates, financial institutions, and their associated ecosystems.
Furthermore, in the same month, Standard Chartered launched the Standard Chartered Trustee (Hong Kong). This followed regulatory approval of its acquisition of RBC Investor Services Trust Hong Kong. The strategic acquisition will gradually integrate SCBHK’s existing local trustee capabilities into SC Trustee. This move aims to bolster SCBHK’s securities services and client base, while also expanding its trustee business into the Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) schemes and Occupational Retirement Schemes Ordinance schemes in Hong Kong.
This article is based on news from marketing-interactive.com
