Morgan Stanley just cut about 3% of its global workforce, which works out to roughly 2,500 jobs. This happened across the bank’s three major divisions, the Wall Street Journal reported citing people familiar with the matter.
Morgan Stanley Layoffs 2026: Who got hit?
The cuts touched the bank’s three big divisions: investment banking and trading, wealth management, and investment management. But the report said that the financial advisors weren’t affected.
Citing a person familiar with the matter, the WSJ reported that the changes are linked to new business goals, changes in office locations, and how employees have performed in their roles. These moves are taking place in the United States as well as in other countries.
The report added that these latest job cuts in the wealth management unit have affected private bankers as well as employees working in support roles. Among those hit are staff members who handle home loans for wealthy clients.
Strong 2025 results but layoffs continue
The decision comes even though the bank had a strong year in 2025. Morgan Stanley, which employs about 83,000 people, reported its highest-ever yearly revenue in both its investment banking and trading business, as well as in its wealth management arm.
Even though 2025 was a great year for Morgan Stanley, hitting record annual revenue and crushing expectations for Q4 profits, the layoffs were still carried. In fact, investment banking revenue jumped 47%, dealmaking picked up big time, and debt underwriting fees almost doubled.
People aware of the matter said many employees were informed on Wednesday, though the process had started last week. In fact, the bank has carried out multiple rounds of layoffs over the past few years.
Looking ahead to 2026, Reuters reported that bank executives were sounding pretty upbeat about solid pipelines for mergers, acquisitions, and IPOs. Trading desks have also been busy thanks to choppy markets, stuff like worries over AI shaking up old tech companies and geopolitical issues pushing clients to hedge risks and reposition their portfolios.
Bigger Picture: Layoffs keep rolling in finance and tech
This isn’t just a Morgan Stanley thing. Lots of US companies have been trimming staff this year to streamline and make room for more AI tools. For example, recently, Block (the payments company run by Jack Dorsey) announced it was cutting over 4,000 jobs—almost half its workforce, as part of a big push to build AI into everything they do.