HSBC To Sack 2,200 Employees

HSBC Holdings PLC (NYSE: HBC) plans to cut more than 2,200 jobs in the United Kingdom, where it's most profitable, in a bid to lower costs and boost profit margins, according to published reports.

The restructuring will affect 3,167 positions in total; however, nearly 1,000 employees will be reassigned to other jobs. The remaining 2,217 jobs to be cut primarily target the senior and middle management levels, mainly at the company's retail bank and head office areas, according to Reuters. HSBC employs 52,000 people in Britain.

The company said it is targeting redundancies and unnecessary bureaucracy, Reuters reported.

The layoffs are part of CEO Stuart Gulliver's plans announced last year to cut 30,000 jobs globally by the end of 2013 as the company faces new regulations that threaten to shrink the size of many banks in Britain. The new rules include a distinct wall between investment-banking activities and retail banking businesses.

We have taken the difficult decision to restructure HSBC in the UK in order to reduce layers of management and bureaucracy, Brian Robertson, CEO of the HSBC Bank division, told the BBC. These changes will enhance our efficiency as detailed in the strategy we announced last May and they will also help ensure our continued profitability in the face of the changing regulatory landscape.

HSBC is reviewing all global operations, focusing on the most profitable markets to lower its cost-to-income ratio to 52 percent. The company cut nearly 7,000 jobs globally last year in operations away from its U.K. hub.

Shares in HSBC rose 1 cent to $44.85 in New York.