Royal Bank of Scotland has made comprehensive cuts to the real estate and property-related securitization businesses in European corporate and investment banking, and it has included its newly purchased bank – ABN Amro – in the process.
The sharpest cuts were felt in the hard-hit securitization sector, where bond volumes have plummeted as investors shun the market, especially where there is real estate risk involved. Just as the securitization exit for real estate lending has evaporated, European real estate valuations have fallen – especially in the UK.
"Like every other bank, RBS is making sure that we have the right-size teams for the current environment," an RBS spokesman said. He would not be drawn on the size of specific reductions.
We are family
The RBS securitization "family" – as insiders call it – comprises a real estate related group, a corporate risk group and one linked to financial institutions. The real estate group – run by Damian Thompson – lost approximately 23 out of 34 people, according to former members of the team. There were no reports of any job losses to the financial institutions and corporate securitization teams.
The same cannot be said for the wider real estate team at RBS, however.