Business

Friday June 22, 2012

Wells Fargo may move jobs to Asia


CHARLOTTE: Wells Fargo & Co, the fourth-largest US bank by assets, is looking to move some jobs outside the United States as it pushes forward with a company-wide cost-cutting programme.

The bank was considering sending work in its retirement division, technology areas and other business lines to India and the Philippines, spokeswoman Bridget Braxton said. She declined to say how many jobs could be lost.

The Charlotte Observer reported earlier on Wednesday that Wells Fargo was preparing to outsource jobs in its institutional retirement division to India and the Philippines, citing an internal memo sent to employees.

Braxton said the San Francisco-based bank could also shift positions within the United States and was examining which markets were the most “economically attractive.”

A global workforce could also help it meet the demands of clients worldwide who wanted round-the-clock service, she said.

San Francisco-based Wells Fargo had about 265,000 full-time employees at the end of the first quarter. – Reuters

Wells Fargo had about 265,000 full-time employees at the end of the first quarter. The vast majority would continue to based in the United States, Braxton said.

Wells Fargo has told investors it aimed to reduce quarterly expenses by about US$1.7bil to US$11.25bil by the end of this year.

The bank has said it would consolidate technology units and streamline staff functions as part of the efficiency initiative, called Project Compass.

David Carroll, Wells Fargo’s head of wealth management, brokerage and retirement services, said in February his business was looking at areas where it could use less expensive workers overseas, mostly for back-office processing tasks.

His business had about 35,000 employees, with about 500 in India and Chile, he said at the time. Financial services firms often shift technology and processing tasks offshore.

In 2006, Wells Fargo opened a “technology resource centre” in India’s Hyderabad to provide software development. Wachovia, which Wells Fargo acquired in 2008, began partnering with Indian outsourcing firms such as Genpact Ltd in 2005. – Reuters

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