SEB to cut staff in FX as competition hits profit

Swedish bank SEB plans to cut staff in foreign exchange by 5 to 10 percent in the next three years as pressure from competition and regulation dampens profits and offsets higher trading volumes. Robert Celsing, global head of foreign exchange at SEB, said foreign exchange income was flat in the first quarter, despite volumes rising by 16 percent.
"We're going to look at reducing headcount in the FX business, around 5-10 percent over the next two or three years globally (in FX trading and sales). We will invest some money in technology." He said SEB employs 160 people in FX. But increased interest from international investors in Scandinavian assets has helped SEB, which was ranked 21st in Euromoney's 2012 survey of banks by foreign exchange market share, perform well in a competitive market. Sweden and Denmark are in the European Union but not the euro zone so their currencies have been perceived as shelters from the euro zone crisis.