Standard Chartered to cut Dubai, Singapore jobs

London: Standard Chartered Plc is cutting jobs in Dubai and key markets including Singapore as it looks to curb expenses, people familiar with the matter said.

Some senior roles are included in the cuts, the people said, asking not to be identified because the emerging-markets lender’s strategy isn’t yet public.

As many as 100 positions may be impacted in Dubai although the number hasn’t been finalised, two of the people said.

The eliminations also include leadership at the firm’s priority banking operations, which offer personalised wealth-management services, one of the people said. The staff reduction is coming as Standard Chartered Chief Executive Officer Bill Winters is looking for ways to reignite growth. The bank is weighing a plan to simplify its structure, reduce funding expenses and free up liquidity, people familiar with the matter said earlier this week.

A representative for Standard Chartered said the company has made “substantial progress in executing the transformation plan laid out in 2015” and will disclose its strategy for improving returns at its full-year results in February.

The lender is expected to unveil a strategic review to address investor concerns about rising expenses and an approximate 40 per cent decline in the share price since Winters became chief executive officer in June 2015. He said in October that the London-based lender was working on a three-year plan to improve performance. The bank had about 86,000 employees at the end of June.