Deutsche Bank employees begin leaving London office amid global job cull

Deutsche Bank employees were seen leaving its London offices on Monday after the German lender announced its intent to cut 18,000 jobs by 2022 in a sweeping overhaul of its global business.

A number of visibly disgruntled employees were seen leaving, some with A4 envelopes, while a source with knowledge of the matter confirmed to CNBC that people were being asked on Monday morning to gather their belongings and leave the premises.

The cuts are focused in the closure of the bank’s global equities sales and trading business in a bid to improve profitability, and are part of an effort to reduce global headcount to around 74,000 and cut adjusted costs by a quarter to 17 billion euros ($19.08 billion). Deutsche Bank employs around 7,000 people in London out of the 7,990 across the U.K., having first opened in the capital in 1873.

One employee outside the building on Monday morning described happenings inside as “elaborate and complicated.” Meanwhile, several sources told CNBC that some employees, across London and New York offices, received an email at midnight for an 8 a.m. “meeting invite” that was to take place on Monday morning. Many employees had also cleared out their desks last week in anticipation of their roles being made redundant, a source told CNBC.

Along with the job cuts, the bank also plans to create a 74 billion euro ($83 billion) “bad bank.” Along with investment banking chief Garth Ritchie, whose departure was announced Friday but who will advise the board until November, fellow board members Sylvie Matherat and Frank Strauss will leave the bank as of July 31.