HONG KONG – Citigroup is planning to lay off around 20 equity researchers in Asia-Pacific as part of its global overhaul, a person with direct knowledge of the matter said.

Two researchers in Hong Kong are going to be impacted, with the rest of the headcount reduction likely to take place in Japan, Australia and South Korea, the person said.

The cuts are going to make a small dent in the Wall Street bank’s regional research workforce, where it has several hundred employees based in multiple markets, according to the source.

Citi declined to comment.

Amid its sweeping reorganisation, which is expected to lead to as many as 20,000 jobs being cut over the next two years, three senior executives were leaving Citi’s equity trading division, sources told Reuters on Jan 17.

Bloomberg reported on Jan 18 that Dr Liu Li-gang, Citi’s head of Asia-Pacific economic analysis, and Mr Rob Hoffman, head of investment counsellors for South Asia, at its Asia wealth division were leaving. REUTERS