Financial regulators in Hong Kong and Singapore are demanding answers from Standard Chartered following controversial remarks by CEO Bill Winters about replacing workers with artificial intelligence, according to a Bloomberg News report released Thursday.
Winters had described the bank’s strategy to substitute “lower-value human capital” with technological solutions, comments that drew immediate attention from regulatory authorities in both financial centers.
The Monetary Authority of Singapore addressed Winters’ statements during meetings on Wednesday, while Hong Kong’s monetary authority requested the bank provide clarification about the CEO’s remarks, Bloomberg reported, citing sources with knowledge of the discussions.
Both regulatory bodies questioned Standard Chartered about potential workforce reductions in their respective regions, with Hong Kong officials specifically asking whether the bank was using artificial intelligence as justification for eliminating positions, according to the report.
When contacted by Reuters, a spokesperson for Singapore’s Monetary Authority stated that the agency “regularly engages with major banks in Singapore on key aspects of their business.”
Hong Kong’s monetary authority spokesperson told Reuters: “The HKMA regularly engages with authorized institutions on a wide range of matters. We do not comment on day-to-day supervisory dialogues or speculative media reports.”
This regulatory attention follows Standard Chartered’s Tuesday announcement revealing plans to eliminate more than 7,000 positions over the next four years. Winters’ controversial phrasing about human capital prompted the CEO to later address employee concerns about job security.
The incident has sparked broader discussions among major financial institutions about AI’s role in banking. HSBC CEO Georges Elhedery commented that disruptive technology would eliminate some positions while creating others, encouraging employees to welcome change instead of fighting it.
Meanwhile, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon revealed in a Bloomberg News interview that his bank intends to increase hiring of AI experts while reducing recruitment of conventional banking professionals.
