Manulife Financial Corp. (TSE: MFC) has become the latest financial institution to reduce its staff. The firm has cut 250 jobs within its wealth and asset management unit at offices in the United States, Canada, Britain, and Asia.
The financial industry, grappling with economic and geopolitical uncertainties, higher interest rates, and a sluggish dealmaking environment, has seen a trend of job cuts.
Wells Fargo & Co is reportedly cutting 40 to 50 jobs in its corporate and investment banking division. Canadian financial institutions, including the National Bank of Canada, the Bank of Montreal, the Royal Bank of Canada, and the Bank of Nova Scotia, have also recently implemented layoffs as part of cost-cutting measures for 2024.
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“Like every other asset manager, we are weathering sustained market volatility and, for the first time in 15 years, a market cycle of higher-for-longer interest rates,” Paul Lorentz, Manulife Investment Management chief executive, said as he announced the cuts in a memo to employees according to a report by Ignites, a fund industry publication.
Despite the job cuts, Manulife reported a positive third-quarter performance, particularly in its Asian business, where insurance sales in Hong Kong to Chinese visitors are rebounding after pandemic-related travel restrictions eased.
Manulife revealed a 28% increase in core earnings to $1.74 billion in the third quarter, surpassing analysts’ expectations.
In 2022, the Toronto-based insurer and asset manager dissolved the property operations team under Manulife Investment Management, the unit that oversees its real estate portfolio. This has resulted in around 50 employees being laid off from the company in Canada, plus more in the US.
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