NEWS UPDATE
SELL-SIDE
Barclays slashes staff in UK equities business
The reported reduction in headcount does not represent a change in strategy for the bank , source says .
Barclays Investment Bank has made a number of job cuts to its London equities team , according to several people familiar with the matter .
Matthew Rogers , managing director and EMEA head of hightouch sales trading , has left the bank ; as has Neil McKay , head of European event-driven trading . William Fu , an equities trader , has also left , as has Max Tilley , a director in e-trading .
Robin Wiseman , head of quantamental data science , is also believed to have departed , according to confidential sources .
One of the departures confirmed to The TRADE , under condition of anonymity , that the job cuts took place with immediate effect on 7 November .
Barclays declined to comment . Rogers , Wu and Wiseman didn ’ t immediately respond to a request for comment , McKay and Tilley declined to comment .
The cuts represent a modest headcount reduction and do not signal a change in strategy for the bank , another person said . Instead , the goal is to dynamically refocus the business on areas with the highest opportunity .
The job cuts are in line with similar moves made by competitors , several of which have reduced headcount due to market conditions . Barclays increased headcount by 5 % in 2022 across the corporate and investment bank , added the source .
Barclays is not alone in trimming headcount . It was reported that Goldman Sachs is planning to implement a round of job cuts that could result in hundreds of dismissals . Citi also slashed staff in November , cutting dozens of jobs across its investment banking division .
Barclays announced thirdquarter results and posted a profit on strong bond trading revenue . The lender posted net profit of £ 1.5 billion , beating analyst expectations . However , the bank was also hit with a $ 2 million fine in October by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority ( FINRA ) for best execution violations .
6 // TheTRADE // Q4 2022