HSBC plans UK wealth job cuts as it expands AI use

HSBC is planning sweeping job cuts across its UK wealth management business, with sharp reductions proposed for financial advisers and specialist staff.[1] The reported proposals are part of a broader effort to integrate AI.[1] HSBC said it is continuing to evolve to deliver more digitally enabled products and customer journeys, and said those changes are intended to support its wealth service and meet customers’ changing needs.[1] The bank’s stated AI uses include simplifying operations and personalising customer content.[1]

The reported plan would cut about half of management and specialist roles in the business, while reductions among financial advisers could reach around 70%.[1] Those figures describe proportions of role groups, not a disclosed total number of affected employees.[1] HSBC does not disclose the number of employees in its UK wealth business.[1] The Financial Times said the business is thought to have hundreds of relationship managers across the country, but that does not establish how many employees the proposed cuts would affect.[1]

HSBC was in a consultation period on the proposed changes, and affected employees were expected to leave by the end of the month.[1] The report was dated October 7, 2026.[1] HSBC did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment outside regular business hours.[1] For workforce planning, the distinction between a proposal under consultation and a completed restructuring matters: the available reporting describes planned changes, not a final tally of departures.[1]

Banks globally have increased investment in AI, reshaping workforces and job roles, while economists’ concerns about AI-related job losses have deepened.[1] At the same time, executives said HSBC’s private-bank growth plans remained on track despite the wealth-team cuts, and the bank had said it planned to hire hundreds of relationship managers.[2] The evidence does not specify how those hiring plans relate to the proposed cuts.[2]