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HSBC to axe up to 70% of UK wealth advisers in 'deep, wide and brutal' AI jobs cull

From the Newshound archive · first published 7 October 2026 · last updated 8 October 2026.

Around half of all management and specialist roles are also expected to go, with affected staff set to leave by the end of October under chief executive Georges Elhedery's AI-driven overhaul.
Around half of all management and specialist roles are also expected to go, with affected staff set to leave by the end of October under chief executive Georges Elhedery's AI-driven overhaul.
Artificial intelligence technology, which HSBC is deploying to replace human wealth advisers as it slashes up to 70% of such roles — a sharp reversal after the bank hired over 100 wealth managers in 2023.
Artificial intelligence technology, which HSBC is deploying to replace human wealth advisers as it slashes up to 70% of such roles — a sharp reversal after the bank hired over 100 wealth managers in 2023.

HSBC is consulting on deep cuts to its UK wealth management division that would remove around 70% of financial advisers and approximately half of all management and specialist positions, with departures expected to be completed by the end of October. Chief executive Georges Elhedery has placed AI at the heart of his plan to streamline the bank, giving remaining relationship managers tools capable of delivering personalised investment strategies automatically. The restructuring reverses a recruitment push begun just two years ago that set out to bring in hundreds of wealth managers and double assets under management to £100bn by 2030.

One insider described the redundancies as 'deep, wide and brutal', adding that whole teams were on course to be wiped out.

Elhedery had previously cautioned staff against resisting the shift, saying: 'We all know generative AI will destroy certain jobs and will create new jobs.'

HSBC's Q3 earnings on 27 October will be watched closely to see whether the overhaul boosts efficiency or triggers a client-retention problem.

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