One of the largest consumer and business banks in the United States, Bank of America, says it plans to cut 30,000 jobs to save $5 billion in annual costs.
The privately owned bank said Monday the job cuts would be carried out over the next several years, trimming about 10 percent of the bank’s workforce of 287,000 people and nearly one-fifth of the company’s annual expenses.
The share value of Bank of America stock has dropped sharply this year, much like the value of European banks, but for a different reason.
European bank stocks have plunged because of the fear that Greece may default on its bailout loans, some of which have been financed by the banks. Bank of America’s stock has slid by nearly half this year, largely because the firm has lost $50 billion on unpaid consumer credit card debts and loans to buy houses.
In the last few years, Bank of America has been the largest bank in the United States under various measurements. But with the cutbacks, other institutions are overtaking it, and Bank of America says it hopes to eliminate its money-losing ventures.