Barclays could cut as many as 400 jobs in its domestic retail business, according to the reports. They quote sources who claim the bank is trimming its costs as part of a wider strategy review.
Barclays is also planning investment bank cuts as part of its annual assessment of banker performance, a second source claimed. The two rounds of cuts are not related, say reports.
A Barclays spokesperson did not confirm or deny the claims, but reportedly said the bank does not comment on “speculation”.
The latest reports, from news agency Reuters, come after Bloomberg reported that the bank was weighing hundreds of job losses. Reteurs said some retail staff could be redeployed or take voluntary redundancy – but the number of at-risk had not yet been finalised.
A spokesperson for Barclays said: “We regularly review our operations to ensure we meet the evolving needs of our customers and clients in an efficient and effective way.”
Barclays was not the only bank to close branches in the past week. HSBC, Lloyds, Santander and Halifax also shut some of their branches.
Since the start of last year Barclays, Lloyds, Halifax, Bank of Scotland, NatWest, RBS, TSB, Virgin Money and Nationwide have announced the closure of about 330 branches between them, according to data from Link, a cash machine company.
However, Nationwide Building Society has promised to not close any more of its high street branches until 2026, in a bid to keep face-to-face banking alive in local communities. It means the lender vows to keep its network of 605 branches open for the next three years.
Banking giants such as Barclays and Lloyds said the number of visitors to high street banks has dropped sharply over the past few years, while online and mobile banking usage has soared. However, Nationwide has said that people still want the choice to visit their bank in person.
Back in June, the building society’s chief executive, Debbie Crosbie, said: “Nationwide is different. We give customers a choice about how they do their banking and we support the British high street. Because our customers value face-to-face contact, and we’re owned by them, we act in their interests.”
Around 63% of people say they value their local branch, according to the lender’s survey of about 2,000 consumers. The top reasons people cited for visiting a branch were withdrawing cash, checking balances, opening an account, getting financial advice and discussing financial difficult
