Bank of America Reshuffles Lending Unit Employees

Bank of America has reportedly shifted some employees from its wealth management and lending unit.

Fewer than 200 employees were moved out of the unit, with most being redeployed to other parts of the bank and a handful being laid off, Bloomberg reported Friday (March 24).

Bank of America did not immediately reply to PYMNTS’ request for comment.

A bank spokesperson told Bloomberg via email: “As our business and client needs grow and evolve, our focus continues to be on aligning our team to areas of greatest need. Based on current market conditions, we are realigning talent to support those areas.”

The move comes as higher interest rates have dampened business on Wall Street, hiring has slowed across the lending industry, and Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase cut thousands of jobs in their home lending units, according to the report.

Bank of America paused hiring earlier this year but has not made the kinds of job cuts made by others in the sector, the report said.

The partial hiring freeze was made in January in preparation for a possible recession. Some jobs would continue to be filled in parts of the business where revenue was growing, but for the most part the bank would take a break from hiring, Bloomberg reported in January.

In the prior few months, banks that include Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Credit Suisse slashed more than 15,000 jobs.

Industry experts said in January that they expected other banks to make similar moves, preparing to undertake the largest wave of job cuts in 15 years amid declining revenues, the Financial Times reported at the time.

During that same month, Wells Fargo announced that it was shrinking and simplifying its home lending business, focusing on bank customers and minority communities while exiting the correspondent business and reducing the size of its servicing portfolio.

“We are making the decision to continue to reduce risk in the mortgage business by reducing its size and narrowing its focus,” Wells Fargo CEO of Consumer Lending Kleber Santos said Jan. 10.

Also in January, LendingClub cut 225 jobs, saying demand for loans had fallen due to rising interest rates, Upstart laid off 365 employees, similarly saying there was reduced demand for lending.