Barclays to cut 5,000 jobs this year as AI makes the bank more efficient

Barclays expects to have cut around 5,000 jobs by the end of 2026, roughly 5% of its staff. The bank said artificial intelligence and other technology now let it do the same work with fewer people.

The British lender gave the figure on Thursday alongside its third-quarter results, adding to a broader shift at European banks.

About 1,000 roles have already gone, and the remaining 4,000 will be cut before the end of December. Barclays had around 93,000 employees worldwide at the end of 2025, according to the PA news agency.

Most cuts will affect operational and support roles. Chief financial officer Anna Cross said about 60% will come from support functions, including software developers, Reuters reported.

The UK retail bank accounts for the bulk of the savings, with some coming from the investment bank.

Chief executive CS Venkatakrishnan linked the cuts to years of technology spending, which the bank plans to continue. He downplayed the role AI has played so far.

“It is the icing on the cake, it’s not the cake,” he said, according to PA.

Barclays booked about £200m of what it calls structural cost actions in the third quarter, part of roughly £600m for the year.

That is about double its earlier plan, and the bank expects to save a further £300m in the last three months of 2026.

Other European financial firms are making similar moves. Insurer Allianz has said it will cut up to 1,800 call-centre jobs as AI takes on the work.

Pre-tax profit rose 12% from a year earlier to £2.3bn in the three months to September. However, the result missed analysts’ forecasts after fixed income trading income fell 19% to £1bn. Barclays shares fell 2.5% in early trading in London.

“I am disappointed, and you can be sure this will get my attention,” Venkatakrishnan said of the trading result, Reuters reported.

The bank is in the final months of a three-year plan built on cost cuts and technology spending. Its results also land less than a week before Chancellor John Healey’s first Budget on October 28, where banks could face higher taxes.

Venkatakrishnan said the effect of any new bank tax on Barclays would be “bearable”, because much of its income is earned outside the UK.

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