Citigroup makes small cuts in mortgage workforce as housing market cools

CITIGROUP on Friday (Sep 2) said it has slightly trimmed its mortgage workforce, due to an internal streamlining of functions.

Fewer than 100 positions were affected, according to Bloomberg News, which first reported the layoffs.

“We are doing our best to support each individual by helping them to find new employment opportunities within Citi or outside the firm,” a spokesperson for Citi said in a statement.

After hiring tens of thousands of staff between 2018 and 2020 to handle surging mortgage originations and refinancings driven by low interest rates, the mortgage sector is downsizing.

In June, JPMorgan Chase & Co started laying off employees in its mortgage business, with more than 1,000 being affected.

Wall Street bosses are also in a bind about whether to cut investment bankers or keep them on staff in hopes of a recovery from a brutal first half. REUTERS