London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Monday, Jul 14, 2025

Standard Chartered to merge businesses, shrink some senior roles

Standard Chartered to merge businesses, shrink some senior roles

Standard Chartered to combine retail banking, private banking and wealth management under one umbrella headed by Judy Hsu, regional CEO for Asean and South Asia.

Standard Chartered said on Thursday it plans to merge some businesses and shrink management as CEO Bill Winters seeks to make the banks leaner to navigate a more challenging economic environment.

The emerging-markets-focused lender said it would combine its retail banking, private banking and wealth management operations into one unit. The combined business will oversee more than US$200 billion in assets and be run by Judy Hsu, the regional chief executive for Asean and South Asia.

Standard Chartered, one of three lenders authorised to print currency in Hong Kong, also said it would combine its two Asian business segments under the leadership of Ben Hung Pi-cheng, the regional CEO for Greater China and North Asia.

“These changes will further strengthen our business with individual clients, supporting growth in all aspects of this profitable and differentiated business,” Winters said in a statement.

Standard Chartered previously combined its commercial banking and corporate and institutional banking businesses into one segment.

As part of the changes, Tracy Clarke, regional CEO for Europe and the Americas and head of the private bank, will retire at the end of the year. The moves will be effective on January 1.

Since joining the bank in 2015, Winters dramatically flattened its management structure and cut thousands of jobs to reshape its business and improve its profitability. The lender returned to profitability in 2017 after two years of losses.

But, the bank is facing a much more challenging operating environment than it was at the beginning of this year.

The global economy is likely to contract as a result of the lockdowns and disruption from the coronavirus pandemic, forcing the bank to set aside nearly US$1.6 billion in the first half of the year to cover soured loans. Central banks are also keeping interest rates at historically low levels to try to stimulate economic growth, another drain on the bank’s bottom line.

In July, the London-based lender, which generates much of its revenue in Asia, cautioned income is likely to be lower on a year-on-year basis in the second half of 2020, citing potential headwinds from low interest rates, depressed oil prices and additional waves of infections.

Standard Chartered also said during its first-half earnings presentation it would eliminate a “small number” of jobs this year, but did not say at the time how many jobs would be cut or which businesses would be affected.

Hong Kong, the bank’s biggest market, has been hit particularly hard by the one-two punch of months of anti-government protests and the pandemic. In August, the city’s government said it expects gross domestic product to contract by 6 per cent to 8 per cent this year.

Deteriorating relations between the United States and China also have weighed on the city’s economic outlook.

Crosstown rival HSBC is in the middle of its own revamp, as it seeks to eliminate 35,000 jobs and cut US$4.5 billion in costs over the next three years.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Defends Attorney General Pam Bondi Amid Epstein Memo Backlash
Renault Shares Drop as CEO Luca de Meo Announces Departure Amid Reports of Move to Kering
Senior Aides for King Charles and Prince Harry Hold Secret Peace Summit
Anti‑Semitism ‘Normalised’ in Middle‑Class Britain, Says Commission Co‑Chair
King Charles Meets David Beckham at Chelsea Flower Show
If the Department is Really About Justice: Ghislaine Maxwell Should Be Freed Now
NYC Candidate Zohran Mamdani’s ‘Antifada’ Remarks Spark National Debate on Political Language and Economic Policy
President Trump Visits Flood-Ravaged Texas, Praises Community Strength and First Responders
From Mystery to Meltdown, Crisis Within the Trump Administration: Epstein Files Ignite A Deepening Rift at the Highest Levels of Government Reveals Chaos, Leaks, and Growing MAGA Backlash
Trump Slams Putin Over War Death Toll, Teases Major Russia Announcement
Reparations argument crushed
Rainmaker CEO Says Cloud Seeding Paused Before Deadly Texas Floods
A 92-year-old woman, who felt she doesn't belong in a nursing home, escaped the death-camp by climbing a gate nearly 8 ft tall
French Journalist Acquitted in Controversial Case Involving Brigitte Macron
Elon Musk’s xAI Targets $200 Billion Valuation in New Fundraising Round
Kraft Heinz Considers Splitting Off Grocery Division Amid Strategic Review
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
EU Proposes New Tax on Large Companies to Boost Budget
Trump Imposes 35% Tariffs on Canadian Imports Amid Trade Tensions
Junior Doctors in the UK Prepare for Five-Day Strike Over Pay Disputes
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Biden’s Doctor Pleads the Fifth to Avoid Self-Incrimination on President’s Medical Fitness
Grok Chatbot Faces International Backlash for Antisemitic Content
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
×