HSBC mulls 5k more job cuts—report

A man walks past the HSBC’s Hong Kong headquarters in central district of Hong Kong on March 4, 2013. The HSBC banking group could cut up to another 5,000 jobs as Europe’s biggest bank looks to find further savings, the Financial Times reported on Monday, March 18, 2013. AP PHOTO/VINCENT YU

LONDON—HSBC could cut up to another 5,000 jobs as Europe’s biggest bank looks to find further savings, the Financial Times reported on Monday.

The business daily said HSBC—Europe’s largest bank by market value—was set to outline the next stage of a strategic overhaul at an investor day in May.

Cutting 5,000 posts would help the London-headquartered lender make savings of $1.0 billion (774 million euros)—a target chief executive Stuart Gulliver wants to achieve this year.

The British bank refused to be drawn on the report when asked to comment by AFP.

Earlier this month, HSBC announced that it had exceeded its target of saving up to $3.5 billion over two years—by axing 30,000 jobs globally.

At the same time, it said that group net profit sank 16.5 percent to $14.03 billion in 2012, hit by US money-laundering fines, mis-selling scandals, rising tax costs and a huge accounting charge.

Founded in Hong Kong, HSBC currently sees Asia as its main market.