Barclays Investment Bank has made a number of job cuts to its London equities team this week, according to several people familiar with the matter.
Matthew Rogers, managing director and EMEA head of high-touch 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 yesterday, 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 last month that Goldman Sachs is planning to implement a round of job cuts that could result in hundreds of dismissals. Citi this week also slashed staff, cutting dozens of jobs across its investment banking division. Wall Street rival Morgan Stanley is also expected to start a fresh round of job cuts globally in the coming weeks, according to a report from Reuters.
The moves come ahead of the annual bonus season.
Barclays announced third-quarter results last month 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 last month hit with a $2 million fine by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) for best execution violations.