By John-Paul Ford Rojas, business reporter
Deutsche Bank has begun the process of culling 18,000 staff worldwide, with members of its 8,000-strong UK workforce among those facing the axe.
The German lender is scaling back its investment banking division – which has its biggest centre in London – as part of the plans to cut a fifth of its global headcount.
Chief executive Christian Sewing declined to give a breakdown of where the jobs axe would fall, but insisted that London would remain a "critical part" of its plans.
Staff in Sydney, Hong Kong and elsewhere in Asia were the first to learn that they were set to lose their jobs, as the global working day began.
Mr Sewing said the "deep cuts" would not be focused on one region, but there was speculation that Europe and the US would be worst affected.
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Deutsche Bank employs about 7,000 people in London, which is home to its largest investment banking operations in the world, with other UK staff based in Bournemouth and Birmingham.
In a statement on its future in the UK, the bank added: "We will retain a significant presence here and remain a close partner to our UK clients and to international institutions that want to access the London market.
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"We regret that the changes we are making will affect some of our colleagues and we will do everything we can to support them."
Mr Sewing said plans for a new City HQ would not be affected by the shake-up.
In a letter to Deutsche's global workforce, Mr Sewing said: "I personally greatly regret the impact this will have on some of you.
"In the long-term interests of our bank, however, we have no choice other than to approach this transformation decisively."
Deutsche's restructuring plan will cost it €7.4bn (£6.6bn) and is eRead More – Source
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