Morgan Stanley Layoff: Morgan Stanley is laying off people from several of its major divisions. The company has announced a 3% reduction in its workforce, equivalent to 2,500 employees.

Massive layoffs at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley Layoff: Morgan Stanley, the world's largest financial services company, has announced a large number of employee layoffs. The company has announced a 3% reduction in its workforce, equivalent to 2,500 employees. A source familiar with the matter told Reuters that the layoffs are in the investment banking and trading, wealth management, and investment management divisions. However, the source added that financial advisors will not be affected.

Despite profits, there will be layoffs

Surprisingly, the bank broke records in 2025. Annual revenue reached an all-time high. Fourth-quarter profits also exceeded Wall Street expectations. This led to a 47% jump in investment banking revenue as dealmaking accelerated and debt underwriting fees nearly doubled. The bank entered 2026 with expectations that it would be lined up for a number of major mergers and acquisitions, as well as an initial public offering. In such a scenario, the layoffs are incomprehensible.

Then why are layoffs happening?

Clarifying this, the source said that the job cuts were based on strategy and individual performance. The bank is also planning to hire in other areas. This clearly indicates that the bank is changing its location strategy. Under this, it plans to eliminate old roles and recruit new people where there is greater potential for development. This means that this time, Artificial Intelligence (AI) cannot be blamed; rather, the reason for the layoffs is different. At the end of December, Morgan Stanley's global workforce was 82,992.