Allied Irish Banks (AIB) has temporarily put its hiring and promotion plans on hold as part of a plan to cut costs, reported The Sunday Times newspaper.
The move is said to be in response to a recent increase in personnel costs.
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In the first half of 2019, the bank’s personnel expenses increased 8% on a year-on-year basis. This, in turn, led to a rise in the bank’s operating expenses.
Since posting the half-yearly performance, AIB’s shares are said to have plunged by nearly 40%.
The bank has informed the Financial Services Union (FSU) of the plans.
Commenting on the issue, a bank spokesman said: “AIB is an agile organisation which is focussed on being simple and efficient and this is supported by a continual focus on managing costs.
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By GlobalData“In this regard we have advised the union that a temporary hold on recruitment and promotion has been put in place in line with the bank’s renewed focus on cost discipline.”
AIB was recently in the news for its purchase of Payzone through a joint venture with First Data. Payzone is an Irish fintech payments firm.
The bank recently also ramped up its digital capability by signing a three-year contract with personalisation platform Boxever.
