Morgan Stanley to start laying off employees within weeks as ‎deals slow down

Three sources said that Morgan Stanley is expected to start a new round of layoffs in the coming weeks, at a time when deal-making activities are affected by high inflation and economic stagnation.

Regarding the Asia-Pacific region, two sources said the bank has drawn up a list of staff it considers redundant, most of whom are employees of teams focused on business related to China. The sources refused to reveal their identities due to the confidentiality of the information

According to “Reuters”, the third source explained that some of the layoffs will be in the capital markets teams in Hong Kong and mainland China, and it is expected that most of the other jobs that will be cut will be from teams focused on business in China, whether at home or abroad.

The three sources indicated that the job cuts in the Asia-Pacific region will be greater than the annual decrease in the number of bank employees as a result of retirement or resignation, adding that no final decision has been taken yet on the size of the layoff.

They added that layoffs around the world will occur around the same time.

A fourth source said the bank had not made decisions yet on the size or timing of any layoffs, adding that layoffs were not imminent. He added that any cuts would represent a small percentage of employees worldwide

Morgan Stanley declined to comment. According to a company disclosure, the number of its employees reached 81,567 worldwide at the end of the third quarter.

With the prospects of arranging or financing deals declining, some investment banks are preceding more with plans to cut jobs.