BUY-SIDE NEWS
EQUITIES
AXA IM restructuring to cut 210 jobs
AXA Investment Managers is set to slash
210 jobs globally this year as part of compa-
ny-wide restructure to streamline the firm.
The €745 billion asset manager laid out
plans to focus on client relationships through
a segmented approach, which includes a
new management team and plans to invest
around €100 million to fuel its development
as a long-term active asset manager.
Legal & General Investment
Management CEO to retire
The chief executive of Legal & General
Investment Management (LGIM) has an-
nounced plans to retire in August next
year after seven years in the role.
Mark Zinkula was appointed CEO of LGIM in
March 2011, and joined the group board of Legal
& General in September the following year.
Prior to that, he was appointed CEO of LGIM
America in 2008, tasked with the expand-
ing the company’s presence in the region.
Buy-side bearish on unbundling post-MiFID II
Asset managers are generally nega-
tive about the effects of unbundling re-
quirements under MiFID II, according to
a new survey from RSRCHXchange.
A poll of 418 fund managers globally, repre-
senting more than $30 trillion in assets under
management, found that over 80% of respon-
dents outside of Europe believe unbundling
is a bad thing for brokers, while 66% agree
it is also a bad thing for asset managers.
10 // TheTrade // Summer 2018
Deutsche Bank cuts
one-quarter of equities
staff in major restructuring
D
eutsche Bank has confirmed plans to cut
around 25% of staff in its equities sales and
trading business as part of a major overhaul across
the bank, as it seeks to halt a continued decline in
fortunes.
The significant scale back in equities is part of
plans to reduce the bank’s leverage exposure by
€100 billion, or 10%, according to a statement re-
leased ahead of the bank’s annual general meeting.
Germany’s largest bank added that at least 7,000
jobs will be cut from across the business globally,
bringing its total headcount from 97,000 to below
90,000. The cuts, which are already underway, are
expected to be finalised by the end of this year.
“We remain committed to our corporate & invest-
ment bank and our international presence – we are
unwavering in that,” said recently appointed chief
executive at Deutsche Bank, Christian Sewing. “We
are Europe’s alternative in the international financ-
ing and capital markets business. However, we must
concentrate on what we truly do well.”
Sewing was appointed CEO of the investment
bank earlier this year amid a period of turbulence
including the dismissal of incumbent chief execu-
tive John Cryan who held the role for less than three
years. Deutsche Bank reported its third consecutive
annual pre-tax loss of €1.3 billion for 2017.
In a statement immediately following Sewing’s
appointment, he paved the way for a major shake-up
of the business by stating that under his leadership
the senior management team will no longer accept
‘damaging’ cases where targets for costs and reve-
nues have been missed in the past.
“The challenge ahead is a big one for all of us,”
Sewing sa id. “We all know and sense how fast
our industry is changing. The time pressure is
on and the expectations are high from all sides…
Therefore we’ll thoroughly analyse how we want to
position this pillar of our bank in a difficult market
environment.”