
Consolidation in the Gulf banking sector on the back of tougher competition and regulation has also put pressure on financial sector jobs/Shutterstock
by BloombergFirst Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) has cut hundreds of jobs, making it the latest UAE lender to shed staff as sluggish growth weighs on the finance industry.
FAB, the UAE’s biggest bank, dismissed hundreds of employees in recent weeks across several divisions. The lender which was created with the merger of two lenders in 2016, has about 5,400 workers globally.
The UAE economy is coming under pressure from regional geopolitical tensions and weak domestic demand, while business conditions worsened for the first time in over a decade.
Additionally, consolidation in the Gulf banking sector on the back of tougher competition and regulation has also put pressure on financial sector jobs.
Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) is expected to start a sweeping round of job cuts with planned more than 500 dismissals at newly acquired Noor Bank as part of cost cuts across both lenders.
Last month, FAB said that non-performing loans for 2019 jumped 17 per cent to AED 13.5 billion ($3.7 billion) at the end of December, while impairment charges climbed seven per cent to AED 1.84 billion.
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