Morgan Stanley Plans to Lay Off 2,000 Workers, Replacing Some with AI

Mar 19, 2025 10:14 PM - 11 months ago 425260

Morgan Stanley is preparing to trim its 80,000-person workforce by 2,000 labor later this month, marking the bank's first important information of layoffs since CEO Ted Pick took over successful January 2024.

The workforce simplification will impact divisions crossed Morgan Stanley, isolated from for its 15,000 financial advisers, per Bloomberg. The cuts are meant to support costs down arsenic executives look low attrition, aliases a debased complaint of labor leaving an statement done resignations, terminations, aliases retirements.

Some labor impacted by the layoffs will beryllium fto spell owed to capacity issues, while others will beryllium trim because AI and automation person replaced their roles wrong the bank. A root told Bloomberg that the slope expects to make much occupation reductions owed to AI successful the coming years.

Related: AI Could Replace 200,000 Jobs connected Wall Street, According to a New Report. These Are the Jobs Most astatine Risk.

Morgan Stanley isn't the only awesome slope readying to trim roles owed to AI. A Bloomberg Intelligence report released earlier this twelvemonth surveyed main accusation and exertion officers astatine 93 awesome banks, including JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs, and recovered that executives expect to laic disconnected an mean of 3% of their workforce wrong the adjacent 3 to 5 years arsenic AI takes complete tasks. That intends up to 200,000 jobs connected Wall Street are astatine consequence of being trim owed to automation.

Morgan Stanley has released respective soul AI devices for employees. In September 2023, the slope rolled retired an AI knowledge adjunct tool that quickly finds accusation wrong Morgan Stanley investigation for financial advisers. In June 2024, the slope released different AI tool that takes notes and finds action items for financial advisers during their video meetings pinch clients.

Pick told investors successful June that the AI devices could prevention labor betwixt 10 to 15 hours per week.

"This is perchance really game-changing," he stated astatine the time, per Reuters.

Ted Pick, CEO of Morgan Stanley. Photographer: Hollie Adams/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Morgan Stanley executives credited the caller AI exertion pinch helping the slope study grounds gross and profits. Pick told CNBC successful October that AI makes the slope much cost-effective and productive. In 2024, Morgan Stanley achieved record nett revenues of $61.8 billion, up from $54.1 cardinal successful 2023.

Morgan Stanley is the latest slope to scheme layoffs. One of its rivals, Goldman Sachs, is aiming to trim 3% to 5% of its 46,500-person workforce successful the coming months. Goldman will reportedly ask immoderate managers located successful awesome hubs for illustration New York City to move to emerging locations for illustration Salt Lake City and Dallas.

Related: Goldman Sachs Asks Some Managers to Move From Major Hubs Like New York City to Emerging Regions Like Dallas — Or Quit

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