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At least one large credit card issuer may announce significant personnel cuts as early as this week because of deteriorating economic conditions, says an executive-search expert who consults with large credit card issuers. "I anticipate one of the blue-chip credit card issuers to lay off as many as 10% of its employees in the near future, as early as this week," Clark R. Beecher, a managing director and executive recruiter at Houston-based Magellan International LP, tells CardLine. Beecher would not say which specific issuers are poised to issue pink slips, but he says such issuers as Citigroup Inc. and American Express Co. are under particular pressure to make cuts to survive in the tough economic climate. He expects cuts to come first in selling, general and administrative departments. However, heads also may roll in the executive suite, Beecher says, noting Washington Mutual dismissed its executive team last month when JPMorgan Chase & Co. acquired the savings institution. "We are likely to see the departures of more top execs at card-issuing companies this year," he says. "The economic crisis cycled first through the mortgage industry, then commercial banking, and now it's hitting the card industry." Card issuers are looking to trim personnel at all levels, including call centers and back-office support, but they also may reduce employee numbers through routine attrition, Beecher suggests. A Chase spokesperson tells CardLine the company will tell approximately 3,500 WaMu employees by Dec. 1 whether their jobs will continue or be eliminated. "There is some overlap in markets (between Chase and WaMu) and job functions that won't need to be duplicated," he says. Officials at Citi and AmEx did not respond to calls about possible layoffs.
