Another league table that investment bankers would never generate. Massive rounds of layoff have become the standard knee-jerk reaction to strategic mistakes made by the senior management. The insecure executive and workers are therefore encouraged to be more risk-taking during the good times, which invariably lead to more calamitous downfalls. It is a sad state of affair, exemplifying the many problems of unbridled capitalism.

Firms and jobs cut

1. Citigroup – 6,200
2. Lehman Brothers – 4,990
3. Bank of America – 3,650
4. Morgan Stanley – 2,940
5. Washington Mutual –2,600
6. Merrill Lynch – 2,220
7. HSBC – 1,650
8. Bear Stearns – 1,550
9. WestLB – 1,530
10. UBS – 1,500
11. Goldman Sachs – 1,500*
12. National City – 900
13. Credit Suisse – 820
14. Royal Bank of Canada – 500
15. Fortis – 500
16. Wells Fargo – 500
17. Wachovia – 443
18. Deutsche Bank – 370
19. JPMorgan Chase – 100

TOTAL – 34,463

The above table shows jobs eliminated by the biggest banks and securities firms since the collapse of the subprime mortgage market in July 2007. The figures are based on company disclosures.

* Goldman Sachs said on Jan. 25 that its job cuts reflected the
firm's policy of weeding out underperformers.