Barclays is to close its Indian equities business as part of efforts to cut costs and boost profit, two sources with direct knowledge of the plan said on Monday. MUMBAI: Barclays is to close its Indian equities business as part of efforts to cut costs and boost profit, two sources with direct knowledge of the plan said on Monday. The British bank's equities business in India, which was rolled out in 2011, includes research and broking for institutional investors, and employs some two dozen people, the sources said. The planned closure is part of chief executive Jes Staley's wider plan to cut costs, the sources, who declined to be named, said. Barclays is midway through a three-year cost-reduction plan, which involves shedding 19,000 jobs, or about 14% of its global workforce. In November, the bank put a freeze on hiring until the start of 2016. RELATED Recommended By Colombia
Barclays is to shut its Indian equities business as part of its ongoing efforts to cut costs and boost profit, according to reports. Barclays is midway through a three-year cost-reduction plan involving cutting 19,000 jobs; in November, the bank also put a freeze on hiring until the beginning of 2016. It is also considering the sale of its Asian private wealth business, with DBS Holdings and Julius Baer as potential bidders. This latest news follows a report last week that Societe Generale was shutting down its equities research desk in India as part of an internal reorganisation.