Banking giant axes 2,000 more staff.

Byline: By HENRYK ZIENTEK Business Reporter

SWISS bank UBS said today it was axing 2,000 jobs as part of a major shake-up of its business.

The group, which employs about 7,000 staff in London and 19,000 worldwide, did not say how many job cuts would hit the UK.

It takes the number of job losses at UBS's investment banking arm to 6,000 during the past year.

The Swiss giant has been one of the worst hit by investments in "toxic" mortgage-backed assets, suffering investment write-offs totalling more than pounds 23.7bn since the start of last year.

UBS said it would be reducing its fixed income and currency dealing operations, as well as "substantially" reducing its real estate securitisation business as part of the changes.

Jerker Johansson, chairman and chief executive of UBS investment bank, said: "The ongoing crisis in the financial markets and dramatically changed industry dynamics require us to recalibrate our business."

The job cuts are the latest to hit the City, and follow several hundred redundancies at collapsed US investment bank Lehman Brothers this week.

UBS said job losses would be across the board at its investment bank.

Mr Johansson said: "While the revenue outlook is uncertain, these measures will allow us to focus on our strengths, reduce the cost base to a more sustainable level and position our core businesses for growth once fundamentals improve."

UBS shareholders meeting in Switzerland yesterday heard that the group expected to be profitable in the third quarter this year.

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BANK ROLE: UBS is changing its business