Reuters/London
Barclays announced a shake up at its investment bank yesterday as the group tries to cut costs in a tough market and reduce risks to its reputation following the Libor scandal. Rich Ricci, head of corporate and investment banking, said he needs to take action to prepare for more difficult times, while regulatory change and clients’ demands mean a greater degree of regional leadership and coordination is needed. “We have taken market share through the turbulence of recent times, but with markets remaining challenging we must continue to control our own destiny,” Ricci said in a memo to staff seen by Reuters. He will merge trading and distribution teams across fixed income, commodities and currencies (FICC) and equities into a new Markets business, which will be led by Eric Bommensath, who was previously head of FICC globally and trading in Europe. Ricci has been reviewing the management structure since becoming sole head of the business in July, after co-head Jerry del Missier quit in the wake of the Libor interest rate rigging scandal that rocked Barclays. Top banks on Wall Street and in the City of London are stepping up efforts to cut costs and streamline operations as it becomes clear that a slump in trading activity in the last 18 months could continue as the eurozone crisis drags on, leaving banks overstaffed and unprofitable in many areas. Barclays chief executive Antony Jenkins, who took over in July after previous boss Bob Diamond stepped down following the Libor scandal, is expected to pare back parts of the investment bank. Diamond spent more than a decade building up the investment bank. Jenkins has also said he will stop activities that pose “reputational risk” for the bank, and Ricci said last month that this could include parts of its tax advisory practices. Barclays has been criticised for giving advice on complex structured tax schemes in the past, drawing fire from politicians over what they regard as tax avoidance.