Thursday, January 12, 2012

Morgan Stanley cuts 10 fixed-income jobs in Singapore, Hong Kong. Further banking lay-offs are expected in Asia


According to Reuters US Investment Bank Morgan Stanley has cut 10 fixed-income jobs in Singapore and Hong Kong. The job cuts mainly came from sales and trading.[1] In December last year, the bank has announced that it will cut 1,600 employers. According to Reuters source, layoffs included executive directors, vice presidents and associates, mainly in sales and trading and Sneha Sanghvi, who was co-head of fixed-income sales in Southeast Asia and was a managing director, is the most senior banker in the latest cull. Smaller number of jobs in equities and commodities have also been eliminated in Singapore. Foreign banks in Asia started to lay off staff to cut costs and are now even targeting the senior bankers.[1]

Unfortunatelly, according to the headhunters in Hong Kong the recent layoffs by late 2011 and early 2012 are just the beginning and there is “far worse to come”.[2]

As we have written recently in RBS 2012 lay offs may effect Hong Kong and Singapore most, RBS started to make heavy cuts in Asia equities division and mentioned in Singapore job outlook bleak in 2012 article that RBS, Barclays and Morgan Stanley has already started lay-offs in Singapore in late 2011.

On the other hand,  AXA has announced that wealth manager ipac Hong Kong and ipac Singapore will be closed within the first half of 2012. ipac Singapore has a staff of 'just under 50' in Singapore.[1]

[1] - Morgan Stanley cuts 10 fixed-income jobs in Singapore, HK-sources
[2] - Closure of wealth manager ipac hits S'pore, HK clients
[2] -  Daily Dispatches: Morgan Stanley chops 10; ipac closes in Singapore and Hong Kong; headhunters warn of more cuts to come in Asia

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