By Milana Vinn and Anirban Sen
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Barclays Plc initiated layoffs this week targeting 3% of its global investment banking workforce, people familiar with the matter said, as it attempts to streamline its franchise after a tumultuous year.
The terminations are part of a an annual review that also spans trading and research, the sources said. Overall, up to 300 employees may lose their positions in this round of layoffs across the bank, the sources added.
In the technology investment banking team in San Francisco, three senior bankers and one junior banker were notified on Tuesday they were being let go, the sources said.
The sources requested anonymity because the matter is confidential. Barclays declined to comment.
Barclays Chief Executive C.S. Venkatakrishnan has been seeking to stabilize Barclays’ investment banking franchise after a shakeup in the division’s leadership in January led to an exodus of dozens of bankers.
Barclays has also hired more than 30 investment bankers and promoted another 20 bankers in various positions since then.
The reforms have so far had a modest impact. Barclays ranked 6th in LSEG’s global investment banking league table for the first nine months of the year. It was 7th at this point last year.
Venkatakrishnan has also been seeking efficiencies across the British lender so it can invest in businesses it believes have high-growth potential, including wealth management, U.S. credit cards and global payments.
Other major banks, including Goldman Sachs Group Inc and Morgan Stanley, have also embarked on a string of layoffs to better position themselves for a murky economic climate.
Barclays warned in July that its profit margins were being squeezed by consumers repaying debt in the wake of high interest rates.
(Reporting by Anirban Sen and Milana Vinn in New York; Editing by Greg Roumeliotis and Nick Macfie)
