Barclays plans to cut about 5,000 jobs, roughly 5% of its workforce, by the end of 2026, with about 60% of the cuts in support functions, including developer roles, according to The Straits Times and The Business Times. About 1,000 positions had already been cut in the first half of 2026, leaving the rest due by year-end, per The Business Times.

Barclays plans to cut about 5,000 jobs, roughly 5% of its workforce, by the end of 2026, with about 60% of the cuts in support functions, including developer roles, according to The Straits Times and The Business Times. About 1,000 positions had already been cut in the first half of 2026, leaving the rest due by year-end, per The Business Times.

The bank framed the effort as structurally reducing costs to create capacity for investment, while using AI to simplify operations and raise efficiency; Barclays employed about 93,000 people globally at the end of 2025, per The Straits Times. Its Q3 results, published October 22, reported profit of £2.3 billion but missed several estimates; fixed income and currency trading revenue fell 19% year over year. Barclays also said it cut £201 million of costs in the quarter, planned about £300 million more in Q4, and announced a £500 million share buyback, per The Straits Times.

The reports describe a planned reduction and its rationale; they do not establish that all 5,000 roles will be directly replaced by AI or quantify how much of the savings AI itself will generate.