HSBC plans to cut 35,000 jobs and focus on digital finance development

During a conference call on Tuesday, February 18, HSBC executives revealed that the bank plans to cut 35,000 jobs by the end of 2022 and invest more in digital systems and infrastructure, as reported in this meeting.

Significant Workforce Reduction to Focus on Digital Finance

HSBC's future plan for the next three years involves cutting staff and branches, and streamlining operations through technology investments.

According to Bloomberg, acting CEO Noel Quinn stated that certain aspects of HSBC's performance were not satisfactory. Currently, 30% of HSBC's funds are allocated to low-yield businesses and markets in the US and Europe, with plans to exit these operations when necessary. The bank aims to shift more business to Asian and Middle Eastern markets and undergo restructuring by reducing staff and consolidating branches.

Following this news, HSBC's stock price saw its largest drop in six months.

In HSBC's restructuring plan, "digital finance" plays a significant role. Group CEO Noel Quinn added during an earnings conference call:

"In our retail banking business, we will expand our product range and increase investments in digital technology. We will reposition our retail banking business to serve global mobile customers, reducing our branch network in the US by about 30%. We will also continue to invest in digital systems and solutions to enhance the services we provide to customers."

Actively Deploying Business Process Digitization

HSBC has been actively preparing to adapt to the ongoing changes in the banking industry. According to a report by Reuters several months ago,HSBC plans to transfer $20 billion worth of assets to the blockchain-based new custody platform Digital Vault by March 2020 and digitize paper records of private securities to enhance the efficiency of standardized operational processes.

In fact, as early as 2017, the bank appointed a consulting group to explore integrating disruptive technologies such as blockchain, artificial intelligence, and biometrics into its business model to reduce costs.

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