StanChart to slash almost 8,000 jobs in AI push

HONG KONG – Standard Chartered unveiled a plan to cut more than 15 per cent of its support staff by 2030 – about 7,800 jobs – through building up its use of artificial intelligence to streamline operations.

The Asia-focused bank employed about 52,000 people in such roles at the end of 2025, with operations spanning Singapore, Hong Kong, China, India and Poland.

“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,” Standard Chartered chief executive Bill Winters said at a briefing in Hong Kong on May 19, adding that affected staff would receive “good, clear notice” ahead of time.

“We don’t have job losses, but we do have job role reductions in favour of the machines, and that will accelerate as we go forward into AI,” he said.

Responding to queries from The Straits Times, a Standard Chartered spokesperson said the bank remains committed to supporting business growth in Singapore and ASEAN.

“We will continue to hire more relationship managers, accelerate product innovation, improve our digital and client experience, as well as upgrade and launch new client centres.”

The spokesperson declined to disclose whether the job cuts will affect staff in Singapore.

With the move, Standard Chartered joins the ranks of global peers using AI to trim headcount. HSBC Holdings is mulling over deep job cuts over the coming years, while Wall Street firms are similarly pivoting. Goldman Sachs Group president and chief operating officer John Waldron recently described his firm’s traditional operations as a “human assembly line” ripe for automation. 

Standard Chartered shares rose as much as 2.4 per cent in morning trading in Hong Kong, against a flat benchmark Hang Seng Index. 

The job cuts would drive productivity improvements to raise income per employee by about 20 per cent by 2028, according to the bank. Corporate function roles are support roles and include positions such as risk management and regulatory compliance, according to its website.

With the latest measures, Standard Chartered is seeking to build on a long turnaround and deliver stronger growth, even as geopolitical uncertainty clouds the outlook for some of its key markets.

The bank is underpinning its new financial targets by keeping its focus on higher-margin businesses, including affluent retail clients and financial institutions within its corporate and investment banking division.

In the first quarter, the bank reported a record US$18 billion (S$23 billion) in net new money flows to its wealth business. That helped cushion the blow from US$190 million in “precautionary management overlays” set aside to navigate risks stemming from the Middle East conflict.

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 said.

Standard Chartered’s “Fit for Growth” restructuring programme is slated to conclude in 2026. The initiative, designed to streamline operations and deliver US$1.5 billion in savings, comprised hundreds of individual projects with targets ranging from minor operational tweaks to multi-million-dollar overhauls.

After surging almost 120 per cent between early April 2025 and early February 2026, the bank’s share rally suffered a setback, first from the surprise departure of chief financial officer Diego De Giorgi, and later from the outbreak of the Iran war. They have largely recovered since then. 

Mr De Giorgi, a veteran of Bank of America and Goldman Sachs, was widely considered a top contender to eventually succeed Mr Winters. 

On May 18, the lender named Mr Manus Costello as its new chief financial officer, promoting a former research analyst and critic of the bank to replace Mr De Giorgi. Mr Costello was hired in 2024 as the global head of investor relations. BLOOMBERG, REUTERS