Northern Trust Corp. announced Monday that it will cut about 4% of its work force to offset damage from its recent support of money market funds.
The Chicago investment bank will eliminate about 450 positions and other costs, moves it said will result in $50 million to $60 million in annual pretax savings. But they will also result in a fourth-quarter charge of $20 million to $25 million, or 5 to 7 cents a share.
Northern Trust, which caters to affluent individual and institutional investors, has a sizable presence in the money market industry. That segment was roiled in September when a competitor's fund, Reserve Primary, saw its net asset value fall below $1 a share. That instance of breaking the buck, the first for any fund in 14 years, prompted Northern Trust to record more than $300 million in third-quarter charges for increasing capital-support levels for its funds and pay back investors who lost money in a securities-lending program.
