LONDON (dpa-AFX) - British lender Barclays PLC (BCS, BARC.L) announced Thursday its plan to cut around 5,000 full-time employees as part of its cost efficiency savings plan, amid AI boom. The firm expects more than £1.1 billion of gross efficiency savings in fiscal 2027.
The announcement comes after the company reported higher results in its third quarter and maintained its fiscal 2026 and 2028 targets.
During the third-quarter earnings call, Anna Cross, Barclays Group Financial Director, revealed the company's plan to cut around 5 percent of total employees.
Cross said, 'These actions involve an expected reduction of circa 5,000 full-time employees. Around 60 percent of the Group actions relate to support functions, including fewer developers as AI makes our people more productive. Nowhere in the bank is this more relevant than in Barclays UK, where we have taken more structural cost actions than planned in '26.'
The company said it is more confident in reducing 2027 and 2028 costs, below the 2025 level.
In its third quarter, profit before tax was £2.32 billion, up 12 percent from £2.08 billion in the same period last year, and total income increased 3 percent to £7.37 billion from £7.17 billion in the prior year period.
The firm recorded increased income in all segments, except Barclays US Consumer Bank. Further, the company announced a £500 million share buyback.
Barclays stated that it has either achieved or is on track to achieve all 2026 Group targets with one quarter remaining before the end of its original three-year plan. The firm is also on track to deliver fiscal 2028 targets.
Barclays shares were trading 0.93 percent lower in the pre-market activity on the NYSE, and 0.43 percent on the London Stock Exchange.
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