HSBC Bank Preparing to Lay Off "20,000 Employees"! CEO Decides to Use AI to Reduce Back-Office Positions

HSBC is considering a major round of layoffs that could affect approximately 20,000 jobs, representing 10% of its global workforce of 208,720 employees. CEO Georges Elhedery is betting on AI automation to cut costs in middle and back-office departments. This large-scale restructuring may be a mid-term plan spanning 3 to 5 years.
(Background: Jack Dorsey slashed half of Block’s staff and bet on AI: your company could be next, causing XYZ stock to jump 23%)
(Additional context: HSBC launches Hong Kong’s first gold token, “HSBC Gold Token”! $30 billion in daily trading volume flowing into blockchain)

HSBC is brewing a major restructuring. According to Bloomberg, citing insiders, the world’s largest European bank is considering cutting about 20,000 jobs, nearly 10% of its 208,720 full-time employees. This is part of HSBC’s 3-5 year mid-term plan, still in the evaluation stage with no final decision made.

The driving force behind this is CEO Georges Elhedery, who has been pushing AI automation for about 18 months since taking office. He aims to replace roles in middle and back-office functions that are most easily automated. In simple terms, it’s not about cutting sales staff but those handling files, processes, and reports.

More specifically, the bank’s middle and back-office roles mainly involve risk management, compliance, accounting, quality control, as well as settlement, clearing, account management, HR, administration, and legal affairs.

Who Are Most at Risk

The most impacted are non-customer-facing roles, especially in HSBC’s global service centers. These departments handle transaction settlement, compliance review, data processing, and other repetitive tasks—areas where AI excels.

The implementation approach isn’t solely about outright layoffs. Bloomberg reports that HSBC may adopt a multi-pronged strategy, such as not replacing employees who leave, and downsizing through business exits or sales, allowing staff numbers to decline naturally. Some employees might not receive formal layoff notices but will find their positions quietly eliminated.

HSBC has not yet responded to Bloomberg.