HSBC Holdings Plc will impose a hiring and pay freeze this year as part of its drive to cut as much as $5 billion in costs by the end of 2017, a spokeswoman for the bank said Sunday.

The actions were outlined in a memorandum received by employees on Friday, the bank’s Gillian James said in an e-mail statement. The moves were reported earlier by Reuters.

“As flagged in our Investor Update we have targeted significant cost reductions by the end of 2017,” James said.

HSBC Chief Executive Officer Stuart Gulliver in June outlined a three-year plan to pare back a sprawling global network by shutting money-losing businesses and eliminating jobs as he pushes to improve earnings amid surging compliance costs. Other major European lenders from Credit Suisse Group AG to Deutsche Bank AG are cutting thousands of jobs as they battle to adapt to tougher regulatory demands on capital.

Under its three-year plan, the London-based lender is seeking to reduce the number of full-time employees by 22,000 to 25,000, or about 10 percent. The bank is aiming for reductions of $4.5 billion to $5 billion and is seeking a buyer for its Turkey business after selling operations in Brazil.

As part of its focus on more profitable markets, HSBC is reviewing its operations in Lebanon and may exit the Middle Eastern country, people with knowledge of the matter said earlier this month. The bank is closing its Indian private-banking business, people familiar with that move said in November.

Source:
@BRUDIRECT.COM

by Steve Geimann

If you have any stories or news that you would like to share with the global online community, please feel free to share it with us by contacting us directly at [email protected]