BNP Paribas to cut 675 jobs in France via voluntary redundancy, say sources

BNP Paribas presented a voluntary redundancy plan to unions on Thursday that calls for 675 job cuts at its corporate and institutional bank in France, a source familiar with the matter said.

BNP Paribas said in February it planned to save more than 1 billion euros by 2019 to help to mitigate the impact of rising regulatory and compliance costs.

Sources had told Reuters that BNP Paribas management was to meet with union representatives at its CIB division on Thursday.

BNP Paribas said when it reported annual results in February, it wanted to reduce low-return activities and portfolios and make adjustments in all regions, a process the bank had already started in the Middle East, Africa and Russia.

BNP Paribas had more than 30,000 employees at its CIB division in nearly 57 countries, according to its 2015 annual report.

The French bank has also said it aims to gain market share in investment banking as rivals retreat to develop less capital-intensive and fee-driven businesses.