Lehman to Lay Off Another 1,500

Downsizing binge will rival that of financial crisis

(NEWSER) - Wall Street's job creators aren't exactly living up to that billing. The market is soaring, and so are bank profits, but financial firms are preparing for a massive round of layoffs, analysts tell Fortune , estimating that the banks will cut nearly 21,000 jobs. That would be a bloodbath on par with the one that occurred during the financial crisis; 28,000 were eliminated in that purge, but that number included jobs lost in the collapse of Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers, and at the time firms were failing, not prospering. More»

Bank faces 'extremely challenging' conditions, CEO says

(NEWSER) - Citigroup plans to cut some 4,500 jobs—2% of its global workforce—in the coming months as it "faces an extremely challenging operating environment," CEO Vikram Pandit warns. Pandit, who has cut more than 100,000 jobs at Citi since taking charge in 2007, says regulatory changes and the euro zone crisis are among the factors forcing the company to cut costs as revenue slumps, Reuters reports. More»

Bankruptcy experience is the skill set of the future, execs say

(NEWSER) - Wall Street's hottest jobs in 2009 are coming from its biggest disaster of 2008—Lehman Brothers, the Wall Street Journal reports. Lehman still has billions of dollars in assets and contracts to untangle and restructure, and Wall Street's legions of laid-off execs are keen to get a piece of the action. Even reviled ex-CEO Dick Fuld is quietly toiling in the ashes of his empire. More»

So far, 170,000 positions have been cut worldwide

(NEWSER) - Job cuts in the financial services sector could hit 350,000 worldwide by the middle of 2009, double the number so far, Bloomberg reports. "This is the financial equivalent of World War II," says the CEO of a major headhunting firm. If he's right, by summer, the industry will be 20% smaller than it was before Lehman Brothers and other investment banks started shedding jobs by the thousands. More»

(NEWSER) - Citigroup plans to slash more than 50,000 jobs, roughly 14% of its workforce, the company announced today, in an effort to shed expenses during the economic downturn. The cuts are in addition to the 23,000 heads that have already rolled this year, Bloomberg reports. Citi stock fell 19% last week, and is down 68% on the year. The nation's fourth-largest bank says the moves will forward its goal of cutting expenses by 20% in 2009. More»