Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) has laid off employees following a reorganisation of its business segments, reported Reuters.
This move comes after the C$13.5bn ($9.4bn) acquisition of HSBC’s Canadian operations.
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The layoffs affected the technology and operations, personal banking, and commercial banking teams, the sources said told the news agency.
The exact number of impacted employees remains unclear, and it is uncertain if further layoffs will occur.
RBC restructured its personal and commercial banking divisions into standalone segments last July, following the HSBC acquisition.
This change also involved a reorganisation of senior leadership.
At the time, the Canadian bank said the change will “better position RBC to take advantage of its scale, speed up decision making and elevate leaders to deliver on strategic growth priorities with clients at the centre”.
A memo by RBC commercial banking head Sean Amato-Gauci noted that some employees had left the bank following the changes.
Personal banking head Erica Nielson mentioned in a separate memo that several team members have joined from outside the business segment or are transitioning to new roles as part of the reorganisation.
Some layoffs occurred at RBCx, the bank’s tech and innovation banking arm within the tech and operations team, according to a source.
An RBC spokesperson stated: “With these changes, some difficult decisions have been made and as a result some colleagues were impacted and left the bank.”
“The changes we have made better position RBC to take advantage of our global scale, simplify how we work and elevate the leaders and talent who will shape our client-focused growth opportunities,” the spokesperson added.
RBC had 94,624 full-time employees as of 31 January 2025, marking a 5% increase from the previous year due to the HSBC acquisition.
During the three months ending 31 January 2025, RBC reported revenue of C$16.73bn, up from C$13.48bn in the same period in 2024.
The bank’s net income was C$5.1bn for the quarter, an increase of C$1.5bn or 43% from the prior year, with HSBC Canada contributing C$214m to the net income.
