Goldman Leads Job Cut Charge, MF Global Customers May Be Made Whole

Goldman Sachs led major foreign banks in Japan in accelerating job cuts last fiscal year as employees relocated to other Asian financial centers and firms trimmed costs to cope with a worldwide industry slump.

Bloomberg reports that the number of staff at nine global banks in Japan fell by 537, or 7.3%, to a combined 6,796 as of March 31, more than double the previous year’s 3.2% reduction, according to company filings to the Financial Services Agency.

Wall Street and European banks have been eliminating jobs and transferring staff from Japan to Hong Kong and Singapore to reduce expenses as the euro region’s debt woes dent global investor confidence.

Goldman reduced Japan headcount by 14% to 847, the biggest cut among the banks, according to the New York-based firm’s filing e-mailed to Bloomberg News.

Finally, Reuters reports that the trustee overseeing the liquidation of MF Global's failed futures brokerage told a U.S. Senate panel on Wednesday that customers could receive over 90% of their funds.

While it may take months or years of legal battles to recoup more of the $1.6bn in missing money, the comments from James Giddens added to months of growing optimism that thousands of farmers and futures traders who had feared a devastating financial blow may yet be made whole.