[SINGAPORE] Dozens of staff at Standard Chartered have reportedly been laid off in Singapore in a fresh round of job cuts by the London-based bank.
The move affected about 80 Singapore-based employees – understood to be from the bank’s technology and operations teams – with their jobs being offshored to India, according to finance jobs portal efinancialcareers.
In a website article published on Jun 12, the global financial services company noted that “sources at the bank in Singapore said the 80 jobs currently being offshored to India are likely only the start”.
“Singapore remains a critical centre for their global businesses and technology and operations teams,” a StanChart spokesman said when contacted by ST, without providing details such as whether the job cuts are part of the bank’s plan to save costs in a bid to return capital to shareholders.
“We continually look to enhance our operations to serve our clients better. As a global firm, we maintain a dynamic blend of world-class local talent in our key markets, including Singapore, and leverage the multi-disciplinary expertise housed in our global business service hubs,” he added.
The bank, which makes most of its money in Asia and the Middle East, is in the midst of a corporate cost-saving programme called “Fit for Growth” as it aims to return US$1.5 billion more to shareholders. It reported fourth-quarter earnings that beat estimates in February 2025.
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The bank had previously cut about 100 jobs across its Singapore, London and Hong Kong hubs in November 2024. This was part of the Asia-focused lender’s plan to cut costs by more than US$1 billion through 2024.
StanChart’s head office in Singapore is at Marina Bay Financial Centre, with a network of 11 branches and over 30 ATMs islandwide.
A check on StanChart’s job openings on its website showed that the bank is still hiring for over 60 Singapore-based roles in areas ranging from operations to marketing and business development. Tech positions, such as infrastructure engineers and those related to digital products, are still open.
The job cuts follow other global banks that have made reductions to their workforce, including DBS, which had communicated its intention to reduce its contract and temporary staff by around 4,000 over the next three years as artificial intelligence increasingly takes on roles carried out by humans.
Meanwhile, HSBC had also announced a restructuring process in October 2024 that was expected to lead to job cuts, mainly involving those in senior roles to reduce duplication. HSBC Singapore was not able to comment on the number and type of senior management roles it has here, then.
The financial sector’s contribution to Singapore’s gross domestic product has grown from 12.5 per cent in 2018 to 13.8 per cent in 2024, with a workforce of close to 200,000 here. THE STRAITS TIMES
