Search the Internet          Tips  Sites: Finance, Investment

BankAm to lay off equities, M&A staff in Bombay

Bank of America is looking to cut 55 staff in its equities and mergers and acquisitions departments in Bombay, Hong Kong and Singapore over the next four to five weeks, the president of its Asian operation said on Wednesday.

"When you stand back and look at a piece of business that represents two per cent of (your revenue), obviously it's not in the top pecking order of what you want to prioritise," said Colm McCarthy, the Singapore-based president of Bank of America Asia.

BA has 3,000 staff in 12 Asian countries. Of the 55 staff to be affected by BA's exit from a roughly four-year old effort in equity and banking advisory, some could be offered job opportunities in BA's debt unit. McCarthy said BA will maintain investment bankers to handle client relationships for its debt capital raising businesses.

"Debt is what we do and what we do well," he said in a telephone interview.

McCarthy said BA began to review its Asian operations in the beginning of the year, and the staff cuts are part of a 24-month strategy to focus the bank's Asian business in debt capital markets, which includes project finance and leasing, global markets including derivatives and interbank trading, and working capital products such as trade finance, foreign exchange and electronic banking.

He added that BA was also looking to build-up local currency debt market securities capabilities in India and Hong Kong.

Bank of America Corp shares rose 2.25 per cent in New York on Tuesday to close at $59.95.

Tell us what you think of this report