Canadian Banks Buck Job-Cutting Trend

Royal Bank of Canada is among lenders bucking job-cutting trends in the U.S. and Europe as acquisitions help swell head count at Canada’s biggest banks.

Bloomberg reports that the nation’s eight publicly traded lenders added 8,512 full-time employees in the three months ended July 31, a 2.5% increase, regulatory filings show. Most came from the takeover by Toronto-based Royal Bank of RBC Dexia Investor Services, representing the bulk of the 6,938 staff added by Canada’s biggest lender in the fiscal third quarter.

Workforce increases at Canadian banks, ranked the world’s soundest for five consecutive years by the World Economic Forum, contrast with more than 62,000 jobs lost at U.S. rivals between September 2008 and the end of June. Canada’s lenders have expanded their ranks through more than 100 acquisitions in the wake of the financial crisis.

'They’ve been very disciplined from a cost standpoint, so if they’re hiring, obviously they have some confidence in their business', said Bruce Campbell, who helps manage about C$100 million in assets at StoneCastle Investment Management Inc. in Kelowna, British Columbia, including Canadian bank shares.

Bank of Nova Scotia, the country’s third-largest lender, will add about 1,100 employees after it completes its C$3.13 billion takeover of the Canadian unit of ING Groep NV (INGA), announced last month.

Hit the link below to access the complete Bloomberg article:

Banks Grow Amid Cutbacks in London-New York

Big Banks Hide Risk Transforming Collateral for Traders

New IPhone Redesign to Sell 10 Million Units Within Weeks