Standard Chartered plans to cut 7,800 jobs by 2030 as AI automation reshapes banking workforce

Standard Chartered plans to cut 7,000 jobs in AI push -- lender wants to replace 'lower-value human capital' and focus on automation

British multinational bank Standard Chartered just announced that it will cut 15% of corporate roles through 2030 and replace 'lower-value human capital' with AI. According to a Reuters estimate, this accounts for about 7,000 positions across the bank's 52,000 employees executing corporate functions, or more than 8.5% of its total workforce of 82,000. The lender made this announcement as it set higher goals for the same period, aiming to increase its return on tangible equity to 18% during the same period, 6% increase from what it achieved in 2025. "It's not cost-cutting. It's replacing, in some cases, lower-value human capital with the financial capital and the investment capital we're putting in," CEO Bill Winters told the publication. "So, the people that want to reskill, that want ⁠to carry on, we're giving every opportunity to reposition." It's noted that the most affected sites would be the institution's back offices, located in Chennai, India; Bengaluru, India; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; and Warsaw, Poland. "Of course, we're using AI along the way and AI will be a huge facilitator and enabler of that," he added, referring to its ongoing revamp to automate more of its core banking system," Winters added. Standard Chartered is joining the growing number of companies cutting their headcounts in favor of AI. The tech industry alone has cut nearly 80,000 positions during the first quarter of 2026, with almost half of them reportedly made redundant because of the technology. In fact, an MIT study said that AI can replace 11.7% of all U.S. workers, impacting every industry in every state. However, there have also been reports that the AI-driven layoffs were actually caused by poor business performance, with artificial intelligence being simply being used as a scapegoat for wrong decisions in the boardroom -- a thought that OpenAI boss Sam Altman reiterated in a CNBC interview. On the other hand, we've also seen reports coming from Europe that companies widely deploying AI tools and investing heavily in them are more likely to hire new people. It's said that companies using AI properly tend to be more productive and increase their profitability, allowing them to hire more people as they expand their operations. Microsoft even released a study about this phenomenon called "Transformation Paradox," in which only 20% of companies deploying AI are doing so effectively, with more than half of surveyed employees still unsure how their firms are going through the AI revolution. Standard Chartered's move to cut such a huge number of positions will certainly be a cause for concern for all affected employees. And even though the company is offering to retrain and reskill them, the uncertainty of whether or not they'll still have a job in the coming years will stress a huge number of its staff as the bank transitions towards a more automated future. Follow Tom's Hardware on Google News, or add us as a preferred source, to get our latest news, analysis, & reviews in your feeds.

StanChart CEO apologises for 'upset caused' by AI comments

LONDON, May 22 (Reuters) - Standard Chartered (STAN.L), opens new tab CEO Bill Winters apologised for the upset caused to staff by his remarks about artificial intelligence replacing "lower value" human workers, but stopped short of retracting the comments on Friday. Bank bosses in recent weeks have been more forthright about the job cuts they expect to make as AI makes routine tasks more efficient, having previously avoided a direct link to cuts ⁠to focus on productivity gains. In a post on LinkedIn, Winters said he was fielding questions about his choice of words, "which I know has caused upset to some colleagues. For that I am sorry." This is a second clarification of his remarks following an earlier post that reiterated his point and explained why the lender is cutting some 15% of its back-office support jobs. "It's ⁠not cost-cutting. It's replacing in some cases lower-value human capital with the financial capital and the investment capital we're putting in," Winters said on Tuesday as the bank announced it would slash nearly ⁠8,000 jobs as it adopts AI technology. In his latest post, Winters included a transcript of his full remarks, which he said showed that ⁠he valued his colleagues "most highly" and included preceding context that the bank was "giving every opportunity" to at-risk employees who ⁠want to learn new skills. Hong Kong and Singapore regulators have sought clarification from the bank about Winters' remarks, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday. Reporting by Lawrence White; editing by Gus Trompiz Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

Bank boss sorry after describing workers as 'lower value human capital'

The boss of Standard Chartered has apologised after describing employees whose jobs are vulnerable to being replaced by Artificial Intelligence (AI) as "lower value human capital". Discussing how automation was likely to lead to thousands of job cuts at the bank at a recent conference, Bill Winters said it wasn't about cost cutting but "replacing, in some cases, lower value, human capital, with the financial capital and the investment capital that we're putting in". He later sought to contextualise the remarks via LinkedIn and said he was sorry for his wording, which had "caused upset to some colleagues". He said he was committed to helping staff "cope with the accelerating pace of change". The rise of AI tools has led to predictions of huge job losses, particularly for tech workers and graduates. Amazon, Meta and Microsoft, as well as financial services firms, have already blamed tens of thousands of layoffs on AI over the last year. In Winters's first post, he said he wanted to clear up what he said and why at the investors conference. He said the bank had shared its expectation that back office roles would be cut by about 15% over the next four years - about 7,800 roles. For years the bank has helped colleagues "whose roles may be displaced by automation to build the skills needed for new opportunities within our organisation", he said. "In that context, I said that lower-value roles are more vulnerable to automation, and that we have a responsibility to help colleagues move into higher-value roles," he wrote. "That is what a responsible employer should do, and I am proud that our track record in supporting internal transitions is strong." In a follow-up post, he said while he had received "a lot of support" in response to the first post, people still had questions - and he was sharing a transcript of the comments he made so they could better understand the "important point I was raising". He said the full remarks showed he valued all colleagues "most highly and that we are totally committed to helping them to cope with the accelerating pace of change in our industry". In comments under the second post, one person said they were struggling to see the difference between the conference and written remarks. "This was either a poor choice of words or an honest belief that came out as intended," they wrote. Another said: "You will forever be known as the guy who believes his employees are 'lower value'."

Standard Chartered will cut 7,800 back-office jobs to 'the machines' by 2030

Bill Winters told investors in Hong Kong that the bank's HR, risk and compliance functions will shrink by more than 15% over five years, with the headcount efficiency aimed at lifting income-per-employee 20% by 2028. Standard Chartered will cut more than 15% of its back-office roles by 2030, chief executive Bill Winters told investors at an investor day in Hong Kong on Tuesday. The reduction works out to roughly 7,800 jobs, on the bank's own figures, across what Winters described as corporate functions including human resources, risk, and compliance. The bank's stated aim is to raise income per employee by about 20% by 2028. The framing the bank's chief executive chose for the announcement is the part worth reading carefully. ' We don't have job losses, but we do have job role reductions in favour of the machines,' Winters told the Hong Kong audience, 'and that will accelerate as we go forward into AI.' Bloomberg captures the broader Winters framing in even sharper terms, in which the chief executive describes AI as replacing 'lower-value human capital' inside the bank. The framing is the kind that has historically prompted regulator and union attention. Standard Chartered will be aware of that, and the language is, on the cleanest read, deliberate. The mechanics of the headcount reduction are familiar from comparable bank-AI announcements. Standard Chartered is targeting the back-office functions where rules-based decision support, document processing and case-management workflows have been the most tractable for AI deployment over the past two years. The 15%+ cut over five years is, in actuarial terms, a roughly 3% annual run-off rate, which the bank says will be partly absorbed through natural attrition and partly through internal redeployment into other roles, though Winters did not specify the proportion split. The 20% income-per-employee improvement target by 2028 is the operational metric the cuts are calibrated against. Standard Chartered is the third major bank to make a structured AI-headcount announcement in the past month. Commonwealth Bank of Australia named its first Chief AI Scientist yesterday as part of a broader internal AI buildout that has put CBA fourth globally on the 2025 Evident AI Index. The two paths are not mutually exclusive; banks at the front of the AI curve are doing both, on the same balance sheet, in the same quarters. The difference is which side gets announced first. The bank-sector comparison is the part the wire coverage has consistently underplayed. JPMorgan, Citi, HSBC and Wells Fargo have all signalled, in earnings-call commentary over the past two quarters, that AI-driven headcount efficiencies are now built into their multi-year operating-leverage targets. Standard Chartered is, on the public evidence, the first to attach a specific percentage (15%+) and a specific functional area (HR, risk, compliance) to the commitment in a public investor-day setting. The peer group will be under pressure to match the disclosure inside their own next reporting cycles. The wider labour-market signal is louder. Meta moved 7,000 workers into AI-focused roles yesterday while preparing to cut 10% of headcount this week. Klarna has been the most public European example of the same trade. HR Director Magazine flagged Standard Chartered's announcement as part of what is now a recognisable cross-sector pattern: large employers are translating AI deployment into specific, dated, percentage-stated headcount targets for the first time. The political and regulatory consequences of that translation will, on the available evidence, take longer to manifest than the financial-market consequences. The reputational risk of Winters's chosen phrasing is real. UK banking unions, Hong Kong regulators and Singapore's Monetary Authority have all signalled increased interest in how their largest supervised institutions are managing AI deployment from a workforce-impact perspective. Describing affected roles as 'lower-value human capital' will surface in those supervisory conversations. Standard Chartered's investor-day audience may have heard the phrase as a productivity-narrative win; the bank's regulatory-affairs team is, on the cleanest read of the public messaging, now managing the next round of correspondence the same phrase will produce. Operationally, Winters did not disclose the year-by-year cadence of the cuts, the geographic distribution across Standard Chartered's network in Asia, Africa and the Middle East, or whether the redeployment-versus-attrition split will be made public in subsequent reporting. What the announcement does establish is the rough scale: 7,800 people, five years, one investor-day commitment. The bank's first-quarter 2027 reporting cycle will be the first formal moment at which the headcount math becomes visible inside actual operating expense numbers.

Don't fight AI, HSBC CEO tells staff as banks begin job cuts

LONDON/HONG KONG, May 20 (Reuters) - HSBC appealed to staff not to fight AI on Wednesday, saying it would destroy jobs while creating new ones, as banking rival Standard Chartered sought to calm workers over comments that the technology would replace "lower-value human capital". The predictions from two of the world's biggest banks are the clearest sign yet about the upheaval from a technology that can consume and process vast swathes of data, completing tasks previously done by people. CEO Georges Elhedery urged HSBC staff to make sure they were "not fighting us, not disenfranchised, not anxious, overwhelmed, and resisting the change," pledging that AI could make them "more productive versions of themselves". "We all know generative AI will destroy certain jobs and will create new jobs," Elhedery said. Standard ⁠Chartered (STAN.L), opens new tab said on Tuesday it would eliminate almost 8,000 jobs as it replaced what its CEO called "lower-value human capital" with technology. Bill Winters said StanChart would cut 15% of its corporate function roles by 2030, highlighting how staff in so-called back office roles are particularly vulnerable. HSBC employs more than 211,000 people, while StanChart has roughly 83,000 employees. Underscoring the sensitivity of the issue, Winters sought to limit the fallout in a memo on Wednesday, saying staff were valued and any changes would be handled with "thought and care". Morgan Stanley analysts found that companies in banking, technology and professional services had shed one in 20 staff in the past year as a result of using AI. Offshore workers, on which financial services firms rely to run many of their IT services at locations including India or Poland, and young, new workers are bearing the brunt, Morgan Stanley's report said. Banks have been reluctant to ⁠publicly discuss the scale of job losses, although this is gradually changing. Goldman Sachs told staff in October of potential job cuts and a hiring slowdown, an internal memo seen by Reuters showed, as the Wall Street giant embraced AI. Wells Fargo CEO Charlie Scharf said in December it has not reduced the number of people it employs as a result of AI, but was "getting a lot more done" because of the technology. AI-FUELLED JOB CULL RISKS BACKLASH As banks become more up front about how ⁠AI could replace routine jobs, fears are growing over the scale of disruption. Using AI to cut jobs risks a backlash, the CEO of Norway's $2.2 trillion sovereign wealth fund said in April as staff resist adopting it in order not to make themselves redundant. StanChart's Winters said staff who want to retrain will be given the chance to ⁠do so. Academics have warned that staff could be alienated. "One should be cautious not to lay off too many staff, because the point in time may come sooner than you think where the productivity potential of AI is realised, and you want these people," said Fabian Braesemann at the ⁠Oxford Internet Institute. In Britain, six in 10 people think AI will eliminate more jobs than it creates and one in five believe it will create civil unrest, research from the Institute for Artificial Intelligence at King's College London found. Reporting by Lawrence White in London and Selena Li in Hong Kong, additional reporting by Saeed Azhar and Tatiana Bautzer in New York. Editing by John O'Donnell and Alexander Smith Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

Standard Chartered to cut thousands of roles as AI use increases

Banking giant Standard Chartered has become the latest major company to announce job cuts as it increases its adoption of artificial intelligence (AI). The firm, which has its headquarters in the UK, said it will cut more than 15%, or around 7,800, back-office roles by 2030. The BBC understands that Standard Chartered aims to move some of the effected workers to other roles in the business. Companies around the world have announced major job cuts in recent months as they increasingly use AI tools for roles currently carried out by humans. The company did not give details of where the roles would be cut. It has major back-office operations in India, China, Malaysia and Poland. "We are scaling practical uses of automation, advanced analytics and artificial intelligence to streamline processes, improve decision‑making and enhance both client service and internal efficiency," said in a statement. The move is part of chief executive Bill Winters' latest global strategy for the Asia and Africa-focused bank. The announcement also outlined plans to increase the companies profitability. Standard Chartered is not the first financial services firm to shed roles as AI takes on more work currently done by humans. In February, Singapore's biggest bank, DBS, said it expected to cut about 4,000 contract and temporary roles over the next three years. Huge AI-related job losses are expected to hit technology industry workers and graduates particularly hard. Several big tech firms, most of which are spending huge sums on building tools and infrastructure for AI technology, have made major job cuts this year. In April, Facebook owner Meta said it will cut thousands of jobs next month as it spends more than ever on AI projects. The company told employees that it planned to cut 10% of its workforce - roughly 8,000 staff. It said it would also not fill thousands more open jobs it had been hiring for. Amazon announced in January that it would lay off more than 30,000 workers, while Oracle laid off more than 10,000 workers.

Standard Chartered boss apologises for 'lower-value human capital' comments amid job cuts

Bill Winters faced backlash over remarks about some of near 80,000 staff set to lose roles to AI The chief executive of Standard Chartered has apologised for referring to some of the almost 8,000 staff that are set to lose their jobs to artificial intelligence as "lower-value human capital". Bill Winters offered the apology after a backlash over comments he made earlier this week as the London-headquartered lender became one of the first major global banks to lay out plans to cut about 7,800 back-office roles, primarily in response to AI. "It's not cost-cutting," he said. "It's replacing in some cases lower-value human capital with the financial capital and the investment capital we're putting in." Winters posted an apology on LinkedIn on Friday, having received a string of negative comments after a previous post made hours earlier attempting to explain the broader context. "I said that lower-value roles are more vulnerable to automation, and that we have a responsibility to help colleagues move into higher-value roles," he said in the first post. "That is what a responsible employer should do. We will continue to speak honestly about the impact of technological change, and we will continue to act responsibly in helping our people to adapt and succeed." After a barrage of mixed comments at his attempt to clarify the bank's position, Winters returned to LinkedIn to offer an apology of sorts. "I have received a lot of support for the messages in my previous post but still get questions about my choice of words, which I know has caused upset to some colleagues," he said. "For that I am sorry." However, Winters again went on to attempt to justify his comments by providing the full transcript of what he said about those affected by Tuesday's cuts announcement, saying that he hoped it gave a "better understanding" of his point and that he wanted to "help them to cope with the accelerating pace of change in our industry". Nevertheless, many commenters on the post remained critical of Winters' second attempt to explain away his choice of words. "I'm struggling to see the difference between what you said and what is written," one said. "This was either a poor choice of words or an honest belief that came out as intended." Another said: "Your comments were utterly disgusting. You should be ashamed of yourself for committing them to a post". Standard Chartered intends to cut 15% of its more than 52,000 back-office roles by 2030. The company has a global workforce of almost 82,000. The most affected roles will be those within the bank's back-office centres, including those in Chennai, Bengaluru, Kuala Lumpur and Warsaw. The cuts, alongside higher shareholder return targets announced in a strategy update, come as the bank is at the tail-end of a decade-long effort to transform itself from a potential takeover target to a steadily profitable lender.

HSBC CEO says AI will destroy and create new jobs, urges staff to embrace change

HONG KONG, May 20 (Reuters) - HSBC (HSBA.L), opens new tab, Chief Executive Georges Elhedery said on Wednesday AI would destroy and create certain jobs in the financial industry, and the bank was retraining its workforce to meet the challenge. Elhedery told an HSBC investor day event that staff needed to embrace AI-driven change rather than resist it and work with the bank on navigating the new technology. "We all know generative AI will destroy certain jobs and will create new jobs," Elhedery said. "But my initial mission is I need 200,000 colleagues with us on this journey. However many will be ⁠left at the end of the journey isn't the problem. "The problem is how can we make sure that those 200,000 colleagues have been given all the capabilities, the training, the tools to make themselves future ready, be more productive versions of themselves." Elhedery said HSBC staff needed to ensure they were "not fighting us, not disenfranchised, not anxious, overwhelmed, and resisting the change." The CEO of Europe's largest bank spoke just a day after rival Standard Chartered (STAN.L), opens new tab, announced it would slash thousands of jobs in the coming years, the first among global banks to explicitly reveal AI's impact on its workforce. Speaking during an investor day event, StanChart chief Bill Winters said the bank wanted to replace "lower-value human capital" with technology and ⁠other investments. He said the jobs affected were mostly non-client facing. The emerging market-focused lender said it would cut 15% of its corporate function roles by 2030, which, according to a Reuters calculation, would result in more than 7,000 redundancies out of the more than 52,000 people working in such roles. AI FOR COST SAVINGS The comments from HSBC and StanChart show the world's top financial ⁠institutions are increasingly cost sensitive and scrambling to integrate frontier AI models and fend off rising cyber threats. Japanese lender Mizuho (8411.T), opens new tab in March unveiled up to 5,000 job cuts over a decade. HSBC, which in March appointed David Rice as its first chief AI ⁠officer, has highlighted AI as the key to the bank's wider strategic goal of increasing its returns, via savings from automating and streamlining its processes. The bank is deploying AI across multiple functions and businesses to simplify operations and ⁠personalise content to customers, Elhedery said. Its customer onboarding and Know Your Customer function, financial risk and monitoring, contact centres, and wealth management, are also undergoing an AI revamp, according to an investor presentation from the bank. Reporting by Selena Li in Hong Kong; Writing by Scott Murdoch; Editing by Himani Sarkar and Kate Mayberry Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

StanChart CEO apologises for 'upset caused' by AI comments

Standard Chartered CEO Bill Winters has apologized for comments about artificial intelligence replacing workers. He stated that the bank is investing in AI technology. This move is expected to lead to job cuts. Winters clarified his remarks, emphasizing the bank's commitment to its employees. Regulators in Hong Kong and Singapore are seeking more information. Standard Chartered CEO Bill Winters apologised for the upset caused to staff by his remarks about artificial intelligence replacing "lower value" human workers, but stopped short of retracting the comments on Friday. Bank bosses in recent weeks have been more forthright about ⁠the job ⁠cuts they expect to make as AI makes routine tasks more efficient, having previously avoided a direct link to cuts to focus on productivity gains. In a post on LinkedIn, Winters said he was fielding questions about his choice of words, "which I know has caused upset ⁠to some colleagues. For that I am sorry." This is a second clarification of his remarks ⁠following an earlier post that reiterated his point and explained why the lender is cutting some 15% of its back-office support jobs. "It's not cost-cutting. It's replacing in some cases lower-value human capital with the financial capital and the investment capital we're putting in," Winters said on Tuesday as the bank announced it would slash nearly 8,000 jobs as it adopts AI technology. Read More: StanChart CEO seeks to reassure staff over AI-linked job cuts In his latest post, Winters included a ⁠transcript of his full remarks, which he said showed that he valued his colleagues "most highly" and included preceding context that the bank was "giving every opportunity" to at-risk employees who want to learn new skills. Hong Kong and Singapore regulators have sought clarification from the bank about Winters' remarks, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday.

StanChart CEO seeks to reassure staff over AI-linked job cuts

HONG KONG: Standard Chartered CEO Bill Winters sought to assuage staff concerns on Wednesday, a day after saying that the bank will cut thousands of jobs over the next four years as it moves to replace "lower-value human capital" with technology. "Many of you will have ⁠seen ⁠media coverage following the Investor Event in Hong Kong, particularly the reporting around automation, AI, and workforce changes," Winters said in a memo to the bank's staff reviewed by Reuters. "I know this may be unsettling when reduced to simple headlines or a quote out of context," he said. A spokesperson ⁠for the bank confirmed the memo's content. StanChart said on Tuesday it would cut 15% of its corporate function ⁠roles by 2030, which, according to a Reuters calculation, would result in nearly 8,000 redundancies out of its more than 52,000 staff in such roles. The bank cited AI as a driver to slim its operations in its quest to increase profitability and tackle competition. "It's not cost-cutting. It's replacing in some cases lower-value human capital with the financial capital and the investment capital we're putting in," Winters said on Tuesday. In his memo to ⁠staff on Wednesday, Winters said the bank had been open that its workforce will evolve. "Some roles will reduce in number, some will change, and new opportunities will emerge. We will continue to prioritise investment in reskilling and redeployment wherever we can," he said. "Where changes do happen, we will handle them with thought and care," he added.

Standard Chartered Cutting 8,000 Jobs as AI Focus Accelerates | PYMNTS.com

The global bank announced a growth plan Tuesday (May 19) that included plans for a "reduction in corporate functions roles" of more than 15%. Standard Chartered's most recent annual report showed it employing a little more than 52,000 people in support services, putting the cuts at around 8,000 workers. CEO Bill Winters discussed the company's plans in greater detail during a briefing in Hong Kong. "It's not cost cutting; it's replacing in some cases lower-value human capital with the financial capital and the investment capital we're putting in," Winters said, per multiple published reports. The bank will have "job role reductions in favor of the machines, and that will accelerate as we go forward into AI," the CEO added. According to the plan released Tuesday, the bank says its next stage of growth would be "supported by a simpler, faster and more connected operating model." Beyond the job cuts, Standard Chartered said it is "scaling practical uses of automation, advanced analytics and artificial intelligence to streamline processes, improve decision‑making and enhance both client service and internal efficiency." Research by PYMNTS Intelligence offers a glimpse into banking's ongoing embrace of artificial intelligence, where, for example, 73% of top-performing credit unions are working on new payment features with external partners. "Financial firms are not just experimenting with AI; they're operationalizing it at scale, and in the least visible parts of the enterprise, including the core systems that determine how work gets done," PYMNTS wrote last week. Additional research has spotlighted an inflection point around the move from isolated use cases to integrated systems. Financial institutions are not adopting AI more broadly but more deeply, with an emphasis on back-office functions such as compliance, underwriting, fraud detection and operational workflows. "In that sense, the AI race is no longer just about technology. It is increasingly about execution, integration and the ability to turn potential into performance," the report added. "The practical challenge is not simply technical integration. Banks must determine whether external AI systems can operate inside environments governed by audit requirements, cybersecurity controls, model-risk standards and supervisory review."

Standard Chartered to Cut Over 7,000 Jobs by 2030 as AI Drives Efficiency

Standard Chartered Job Reductions and Corporate Function Cuts The bank will reduce 15% of its corporate function workforce, translating to about 7,800 positions. These roles include human resources, corporate affairs, and supply chain management. nearly 82,000 staff globally, with about 52,000 in support functions. Winters told reporters, "It's not cost-cutting. It's replacing in some cases lower-value human capital with the financial capital and the investment capital we're putting in." The most affected centres will include Chennai, Bengaluru, Kuala Lumpur, and Warsaw. Staff interested in reskilling will be offered opportunities to move to other roles.

Standard Chartered to cut 15% of support staff by 2030 amid growing AI use By Investing.com

Investing.com -- Standard Chartered Plc plans to cut more than 15% of its support staff by 2030 through increased use of artificial intelligence to streamline operations, with CEO Bill Winters saying the bank is replacing "lower-value human capital" with technology. The bank unveiled the plan on Tuesday, affecting a portion of the roughly 52,000 people employed in support roles at the end of last year across India, China, Poland, Singapore, and Hong Kong. Winters said affected staff would receive "good clear notice" ahead of time. He described the move as an investment shift rather than cost-cutting. Stay ahead of every breaking move with real-time news on InvestingPro -- save 50% now. "We don't have job losses, but we do have job role reductions in favor of the machines, and that will accelerate as we go forward into AI," Winters said at a briefing in Hong Kong on Tuesday. The bank's announcement reflects a broader trend among financial institutions openly acknowledging automation's impact on employment. JPMorgan Chase & Co. CEO Jamie Dimon compared AI's disruptive potential to the invention of the steam engine last year, stating the bank's annual savings from the technology now equal its yearly AI expenditures. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. President and Chief Operating Officer John Waldron recently described portions of the firm's traditional operations as a "human assembly line" ready for automation. A Pew Research Center study found that half of adults in the US report being more concerned than excited about AI's growth.

StanChart CEO seeks to reassure staff over 'lower value human capital' comment

HONG KONG, May 20 (Reuters) - Standard Chartered CEO Bill Winters sought to assuage staff concerns on Wednesday, a day after saying that the bank will cut thousands of jobs over the next four years as it moves to replace "lower-value human capital" with technology. "Many of you will have seen media coverage following the Investor Event in Hong Kong, particularly the reporting around automation, AI, and workforce changes," Winters said in a memo to the bank's staff reviewed by Reuters. "I know this may be unsettling when reduced to simple headlines or a quote out of context," he said. A spokesperson for the bank confirmed the memo's content. StanChart said on Tuesday it would cut 15% of its corporate function roles by 2030, which, according to a Reuters calculation, would result in nearly 8,000 redundancies out of its more than 52,000 staff in such roles. The bank cited AI as a driver to slim its operations in its quest to increase profitability and tackle competition. "It's not cost-cutting. It's replacing in some cases lower-value human capital with the financial capital and the investment capital we're putting in," Winters said on Tuesday. In his memo to staff on Wednesday, Winters said the bank had been open that its workforce will evolve. "Some roles will reduce in number, some will change, and new opportunities will emerge. We will continue to prioritise investment in reskilling and redeployment wherever we can," he said. "Where changes do happen, we will handle them with thought and care," he added. StanChart's move to streamline operations and rein in costs comes as more global firms slash jobs by deploying AI to improve efficiency. Japanese lender Mizuho in March unveiled up to 5,000 job cuts over a decade. HSBC Chief Executive Georges Elhedery said on Wednesday AI would destroy and create certain jobs in the financial industry, and the bank was retraining its workforce to meet the challenge. In his memo, Winters said StanChart would continue to invest in technology, platforms and automation to improve operations and client services and position itself for long-term growth. "I want to be absolutely clear that the future of Standard Chartered depends on the talent, judgement, relationships, and commitment of you, our colleagues," he said. "Our progress and ambition are only possible because of what we achieve together." (Reporting by Selena Li; Editing by Sumeet Chatterjee and Alexander Smith)

StanChart to cut over 7,000 jobs, boost AI to replace 'lower-value human capital'

HONG KONG, May 19 (Reuters) - Standard Chartered will eliminate more than 7,000 jobs over the next four years as it seeks to replace "lower-value human capital" with technology, becoming one of the top names in finance to target headcount cuts using artificial intelligence. The London-headquartered lender on Tuesday cited AI as a driver to make its operations slimmer in its goal to increase profitability and tackle competition. StanChart said it would cut 15% of its corporate function roles by 2030, which, according to a Reuters calculation, would result in more than 7,000 redundancies out of its more than 52,000 staff in such roles. "It's not cost-cutting. It's replacing in some cases lower-value human capital with the financial capital and the investment capital we're putting in," CEO Bill Winters told reporters. The bank has a total global staff of nearly 82,000. Winters told reporters the reduction will be driven by automation and adoption of artificial intelligence as some staff retrain. "So, the people that want to reskill, that want to carry on, we're giving every opportunity to reposition," Winters said, referring to the retraining option given to impacted staff. The cuts, alongside higher shareholder return targets announced in a strategy update, come as StanChart is at the tail-end of a decade-long effort to transform itself from a potential takeover target to a steadily profitable lender. Its London-listed shares, which have risen 65% in the last 12 months, fell 0.5% in early trading, as analysts said the new targets were at the conservative end of their expectations. "In a world full of uncertainty, performance may prove more challenging further out," said Ed Firth, analyst at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, citing how the bank has benefited in recent years from high interest rates and huge wealth flows. StanChart's move to streamline operations and rein in costs comes as more global firms slash jobs by deploying AI to improve efficiency. Japanese lender Mizuho in March unveiled up to 5,000 job cuts over a decade. And banks globally are scrambling to integrate frontier AI models and fend off rising cyber threats. The most affected roles will be in the bank's back-office centres, including those in Chennai, Bengaluru, Kuala Lumpur and Warsaw, according to Winters. "Of course we're using AI along the way and AI will be a huge facilitator and enabler of that," he added, referring to its ongoing revamp to automate more of its core banking system. CONSERVATIVE TARGETS StanChart said it would deliver over 15% return on tangible equity (ROTE) in 2028, more than three percentage points higher than in 2025, and building to about 18% in 2030. The bank is underpinning its new target by keeping its focus on higher-margin businesses, including affluent retail clients and financial institutions within its corporate and investment banking division. Notably the lender pulled forward a goal of attracting $200 billion of net new money to 2028 from the previously set 2029. In the first quarter, the bank reported both its highest wealth revenue and new client money. StanChart, which focuses on the Asia-Pacific and Africa, is seeking to deliver stronger growth even as geopolitical uncertainty clouds the outlook for some of its key markets. Asia-Pacific banks may need to raise loan-loss provisions further if the Iran conflict drags on, as higher energy costs and weaker growth strain borrowers, analysts have said. StanChart set aside $190 million in precautionary provisions linked to the Middle East conflict in the first quarter. "We are extremely resilient," Winters said when asked about the impact of geopolitical and market risks on the bank's ability to reach the targets. The update on Tuesday also comes as StanChart seeks to quell market speculation about succession planning after Winters' 11-year stint at the helm, saying he will be around for the next few years to see through the latest strategy. On Monday, the lender named Manus Costello, investor relations head and equity research veteran, as its permanent CFO, succeeding Diego De Giorgi, who resigned in February after nearly three years with the bank. (Reporting by Selena Li in Hong Kong, Lawrence White in London, and Rajasik Mukherjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar and Muralikumar Anantharaman)

StanChart to cut more than 7,000 jobs as bank steps up AI adoption

HONG KONG, May 19 (Reuters) - Standard Chartered plans to cut more than 7,000 jobs over the next four years as it boosts adoption of artificial intelligence while targeting growth. The London-headquartered lender is one of the first major global banks to lay out official plans to cut thousands of jobs, citing AI as a driver to make its operations slimmer as it seeks to increase its profitability and tackle competition. StanChart said on Tuesday it would cut 15% of its corporate function roles by 2030, which, according to a Reuters calculation, would result in more than 7,000 redundancies out of its more than 52,000 staff in such roles. The lender has a total global staff of nearly 82,000 and CEO Bill Winters told reporters the reduction will be driven by automation and adoption of artificial intelligence as some staff reskill. "It's not cost-cutting. It's replacing in some cases lower-value human capital with the financial capital and the investment capital we're putting in," he said. The cuts, alongside higher shareholder return targets announced in a strategy update, come as StanChart is at the tail-end of a decade-long effort to transform itself from a potential takeover target to a steadily profitable lender. The bank's Hong Kong-listed shares gained 2.5% in morning trade, against a flat benchmark Hang Seng. StanChart's move to streamline operations and rein in costs comes as more global firms slash jobs by deploying AI to improve efficiency. And banks globally are scrambling to integrate frontier AI models and fend off rising cyber threats. The most affected roles will be with the bank's back-office centres, including those in Chennai, Bangalore, Kuala Lumpur and Warsaw, according to Winters. "Of course we're using AI along the way and AI will be a huge facilitator and enabler of that," he added, referring to its ongoing revamp to automate more of its core banking system. TARGETING HIGHER RETURNS StanChart said it would deliver over 15% return on tangible equity (ROTE) in 2028, more than three percentage points higher than in 2025, and building to about 18% in 2030, well above the estimates of some analysts. The update also comes as StanChart seeks to quell market speculation about succession planning after Winters' 11-year stint at the helm, with the bank saying he will be around for the next few years to see through the latest strategy. StanChart is underpinning its new target by keeping its focus on higher-margin businesses, including affluent retail clients and financial institutions within its corporate and investment banking division. Notably the bank pulled forward a goal of attracting $200 billion of net new money to 2028, from the previously set 2029. In the first quarter, the bank reported both its highest wealth revenue and new client money. StanChart is seeking to deliver stronger growth even as geopolitical uncertainty clouds the outlook for some of its key markets. Asia-Pacific banks may need to raise loan-loss provisions further if the Iran conflict drags on, as higher energy costs and weaker growth strain borrowers, analysts have said. StanChart, which focuses on the Asia-Pacific and Africa, set aside $190 million in precautionary provisions linked to the Middle East conflict in the first quarter. "We are extremely resilient," Winters said when asked about the impact of geopolitical and market risks on its ability to reach the targets. On Monday, the lender named Manus Costello, investor relations head and equity research veteran, as its permanent CFO, succeeding Diego De Giorgi, who resigned in February after nearly three years with the bank. (Reporting by Selena Li in Hong Kong and Rajasik Mukherjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar and Muralikumar Anantharaman)