All articles tagged with #standard chartered
Standard Chartered CEO Bill Winters sparked backlash by describing some jobs as 'lower value' that could be replaced by AI, prompting two LinkedIn posts and a staff memo clarifying plans to transition workers into higher-value roles as about 8,000 roles may be cut over four years.
Standard Chartered CEO Bill Winters apologized after saying employees whose roles are at risk from automation are 'lower value human capital' during a conference on AI-driven changes. The bank expects back-office roles to fall by about 15% over four years (around 7,800 positions) and says it will help staff transition into higher-value roles. Winters later provided clarifications on LinkedIn, stressing the commitment to supporting staff through rapid change, though some colleagues criticized the wording.
Standard Chartered will cut more than 15% of its corporate-function roles by 2030 to lift income per employee about 20% by 2028 and target ROE of ~15% in 2028 and ~18% in 2030. Of ~82,000 employees, about 52,000 work in support roles. CEO Bill Winters says the move funds sustainable growth and higher-quality returns; Jefferies calls the targets conservative. The bank recently posted a 17% profit rise but took a $190 million charge tied to Middle East conflict and is expanding Middle East trade, along with a new $300 million IFC-backed risk-sharing facility to bolster Africa’s supply chains.
Standard Chartered plans to cut almost 8,000 jobs—more than 15% of its back-office staff by 2030—as it places AI at the center of a new growth strategy, describing the move as replacing lower-value human work with capital and training to redeploy staff, while targeting higher returns, more income per employee, and a larger dividend, alongside leadership changes and investor-day highlights.
Bitcoin has plunged about 45% from its October peak and CryptoQuant argues its ultimate bear-market bottom is around $55,000, a level tied to the realized price that has historically provided strong support in bear markets. The firm notes the market is in a bear phase but not in the extreme bear zone, implying the bottom may take months to form and could hover near that level. Other forecasts, like Standard Chartered’s, anticipate near-term downside toward $50,000 before a rebound toward $100,000 later in 2026, with BTC trading around $69,700 at the time of the report.
Oil prices rose to about $70 Brent on heightened Iran-related risk, while Standard Chartered argues the bearish glut narrative is fading as 2026 demand forecasts are revised higher; the IEA projects modest growth for 2026, U.S. shale growth may slow on weak prices, and gas markets rally on Arctic weather with LNG capacity expansion looming.
Standard Chartered's shares dropped nearly 9% after a US Republican lawmaker called for an investigation into the bank over alleged sanctions evasion, despite the bank denying the allegations and stating they are false and repeatedly dismissed by US courts.
Standard Chartered faces a $2.7 billion lawsuit in Singapore over its alleged role in the 1MDB scandal, involving money laundering and failure to conduct proper anti-money laundering checks, as part of a broader investigation into the theft of billions from Malaysia's sovereign wealth fund.
Standard Chartered predicts Bitcoin could reach $200,000 by the end of 2025, driven by strong institutional inflows and increased adoption by traditional financial institutions. Geoffrey Kendrick notes that institutional demand has already pushed Bitcoin past $100,000, with significant purchases from U.S. spot ETFs and companies like MicroStrategy. The report highlights the potential impact of U.S. retirement and sovereign wealth funds, with regulatory changes expected to facilitate greater participation from traditional finance.
Standard Chartered predicts that Bitcoin could reach $150,000 by the end of the year if Trump wins the U.S. presidential election, driven by growing bipartisan interest in crypto and recent regulatory developments.
Standard Chartered, a major UK bank, is accused in US court documents of conducting billions of dollars in transactions for entities funding terrorist groups like Hezbollah and al-Qaeda, breaching sanctions against Iran from 2008 to 2013. Despite previous fines and deferred prosecution agreements, new evidence from whistleblowers suggests the bank's misconduct was more extensive than previously disclosed. The bank disputes these claims, which US authorities had earlier deemed "meritless."
New whistleblower claims have emerged regarding Standard Chartered's transactions involving Iran, raising concerns about potential financial misconduct.
Standard Chartered analysts predict that Ethereum (ETH) could reach $14,000 by 2025, driven by the potential introduction of Spot ETH Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) and the recent Ethereum upgrade. They anticipate a surge to $8,000 by the end of 2024 and $14,000 by 2025 if the SEC approves Ethereum Spot ETFs, projecting $45 billion in market inflows. Analysts believe that approval could lead to a significant rise in ETH's price, similar to the impact of Bitcoin ETF approval.
Standard Chartered analysts predict Ethereum could reach $8,000 by the end of 2022 and $14,000 by 2025, contingent on the approval of spot Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs) by the SEC. The recent network upgrade and potential ETF approval are seen as driving factors for Ethereum's price surge. Additionally, the bank also forecasts Bitcoin to potentially reach $150,000 by the end of this year due to the popularity of newly approved ETFs.
Standard Chartered analysts predict that Bitcoin will reach $150,000 this year and potentially hit $250,000 by 2025 if ETF flows continue to grow, revising their previous forecast of $100,000 by 2024. The bank compares the potential impact of Bitcoin ETFs to that of gold ETFs, suggesting that Bitcoin's market will mature much faster. Bitcoin recently reached a new all-time high of $73,737 before settling around $67,100, with the U.S. SEC approving 11 spot Bitcoin ETFs in January, leading to record inflows and rising demand from traditional investors.