HSBC’s CEO is reportedly contemplating eliminating 20,000 positions in the upcoming years. The job cuts are expected to mainly affect middle and back-office roles, with the CEO looking towards artificial intelligence to drive cost reductions. Some of the workforce reduction may also occur through divestments or exits from certain business operations, as per reports from Bloomberg.
These changes would impact approximately 10% of HSBC’s workforce of 210,000 employees and could unfold over the next three to five years. However, discussions are said to be at an early stage, and no final decisions have been reached yet.
The discussions on job cuts began before the outbreak of the conflict in Iran. HSBC has refrained from commenting on these reports when approached by the Mirror. Since assuming the CEO position in 2024, Mr. Elhedery has already overseen the elimination of numerous roles at the bank.
In a recent announcement, HSBC disclosed that it had slashed costs by £890 million in 2025 after downsizing its senior management team. The bank had initially aimed to achieve £1.1 billion in annual cost reductions by the end of 2026 but is now on track to reach this target by June, six months ahead of schedule.
Mr. Elhedery highlighted that a significant portion of the savings came from streamlining job roles within the organization, particularly at higher levels. This restructuring led to a net reduction of 15% in managing director positions. Additionally, the bank distributed bonuses totaling £2.9 billion to eligible staff in the year, marking a 10% increase from the previous year.
The highest-performing employees received enhanced variable pay compared to the previous year. Mr. Elhedery’s total remuneration for 2025 amounted to £6.6 million, inclusive of salary, benefits, an annual bonus, and a long-term incentive award worth approximately £4.8 million.
HSBC’s pay committee has proposed granting the CEO the maximum long-term incentive award equivalent to 600% of his salary, totaling £9 million for 2026-2028. This award is contingent on the bank’s performance over the next three years and will be disbursed in installments. The bank reported a dip in pre-tax profit by about 7% year-on-year to £22.1 billion for 2025, partly due to losses linked to its stake in the Chinese Bank of Communications and restructuring expenses from its simplification program.