Standard Chartered to merge businesses, shrink some senior roles in latest revamp under CEO Bill Winters

Standard Chartered has said it plans to merge some businesses and shrink management as CEO Bill Winters seeks to make the banks leaner to navigate a more challenging economic environment.

The emerging-markets-focused lender said it would combine its retail banking, private banking and wealth management operations into one unit. The combined business will oversee more than US$200 billion in assets and be run by Judy Hsu, the regional chief executive for Asean and South Asia.

Standard Chartered, one of three lenders authorised to print currency in Hong Kong, also said it would combine its two Asian business segments under the leadership of Ben Hung Pi-cheng, the regional CEO for Greater China and North Asia.

“These changes will further strengthen our business with individual clients, supporting growth in all aspects of this profitable and differentiated business,” Winters said in a statement.

Standard Chartered previously combined its commercial banking and corporate and institutional banking businesses into one segment.