AI threatens as many as 200,000 jobs in global banks – Bloomberg

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Chief information and technology officers surveyed for BI indicated that on average they expect a net 3% of their workforce to be cut.

Nearly a quarter of the 93 respondents predict a steeper decline of between 5% and 10% of total headcount, with the biggest banks to the fore.

Back office, middle office and operations are likely to be most at risk, according to Tomasz Noetzel, the BI senior analyst who wrote the report. Customer service operations could also be hit as chatbots become more adept at managing client functions, while know-your-customer duties would also be vulnerable.

“Any jobs involving routine, repetitive tasks are at risk,” he says. “But AI will not eliminate them fully, rather it will lead to workforce transformation.”

The BI figures are dwarfed byforecasts from Citi, which in June projected that over half – 54% – of jobs in banking have a high potential for automation, more than any other industry. Another 12% of jobs have high potential for “augmentation”.

“Long-established jobs have been eliminated in past periods of technological transformation, to be replaced by new ones,” stated the Citi report. “Many firms have vanished too. AI will repeat this cycle, possibly speeding it up.”