Barclays to cut 5,000 jobs in AI-fuelled push to lower costs
Revenue from fixed income and currency trading fell 19% compared with a year earlier.
Barclays announced plans to eliminate 5,000 positions, comprising roughly 5% of its workforce, as it transforms through technology and artificial intelligence to cut costs. The bank reported third-quarter earnings on October 22, which fell short of several expectations. Barclays' bond traders suffered the most significant decline on Wall Street during the quarter, while equities traders posted impressive gains.
Fixed-income and currency trading revenue from Barclays dropped 19% year-over-year to £1.01 billion, lagging analyst expectations. CEO C.S. Venkatakrishnan emphasized that AI would play a supportive role in the bank's operations, not driving the overall performance. Barclays had already laid off about 1,000 employees in the first half of 2026, with additional cuts scheduled before year-end.
Approximately 60% of the job reductions will affect support functions, including developers. The London-based bank aims to streamline its organization and increase efficiency, leveraging AI to generate capacity for investment. Shares in Barclays experienced a decline of up to 2.4% at the London market opening. The bank had already cut £201 million in costs during the three months ending September and plans to reduce an additional £300 million in the year's final quarter.
Barclays' consumer banking arm in the US and British retail bank remained relatively stable, but the overall investment bank slightly missed analyst expectations with total income of £3.13 billion. Barclays is preparing for potential tax increases on earnings as part of the upcoming Labour government budget, which aims to fund cost-of-living relief for households.
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