Wells Fargo & Co. Will Cut Hundreds of Jobs

Banking giant Wells Fargo & Co. will be slashing over 700 commercial-banking jobs as it reduces its workforce according to sources familiar with the situation who spoke to Bloomberg News. The reductions could ultimately end up in the tens of thousands.

The terminations affected positions across the division, the sources revealed, asking not to be identified. The bank’s commercial banking unit offers a variety of services to businesses that typically have more than $5 million in annual sales.

Wells Fargo spokeswoman Katie Ellis confirmed that at least some reductions have occurred.

“We are at the beginning of a multiyear effort to build a stronger, more efficient company for our customers, employees, communities and shareholders,” Ellis said. “As part of this work, we will have impacts, including job reductions, in nearly all of our functions and business lines, including commercial banking, where we have started displacements.”

Wells Fargo said back in uly it would launch a broad cost-cutting initiative this year as the bank braces for massive loan losses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We are at the beginning of a multiyear effort to build a stronger, more efficient company for our customers, employees, communities, and shareholders,” a spokeswoman said via email to Reuters.

“The work will consist of a broad range of actions, including workforce reductions, to bring our expenses more in line with our peers,” she added.

It was this past spring that heads of large U.S. banks including Morgan Stanley MS.N, Bank of America Corp BAC.N and others had promised not to cut any jobs in 2020.

Shares of Wells Fargo have dropped over 50% so far this year.

Disclaimer: We have no position in any of the companies mentioned and have not been compensated for this article.