Barclays cuts 3,700 jobs in values purge

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LONDON, Feb. 12 (UPI) -- British bank Barclays said it would refocus its business to align it with its values, which would result in the loss of 3,700 jobs.

Barclays was the first major bank to announce a settlement with finance regulators over attempts to manipulate the London inter-bank offered rate, a benchmark rate that is used by banks to determine the interest rates of trillions of dollars in commercial and personal loans.

Barclays agreed to pay $450 million to settle charges against it in the scandal that has also enveloped several other major banks.

While posting a loss of $1.3 billion for the fourth quarter, Barclays announced it would close, pare down and sell various bank units.

"There will be no going back to the old way of doing things," said Chief Executive Officer Anthony Jenkins, who took over after former CEO Robert Diamond left in the wake of the Libor manipulation scandal.

"We will never be in a position again of rewarding people for activities inconsistent with our values," Jenkins told reporters at a news conference.

The bank's departing Chief Financial Officer Christopher Lucas said most of the payroll contraction had already been accomplished, The New York Times reported Tuesday.

About half of the job losses -- 1,800 of them -- were in the investment banking division and those are concentrated in equities and agricultural commodities trading in the bank's European and Asian offices.

Another 1,900 job losses are slated for Barclay's retail and commercial banking operations in Europe.

The bank is planning to close about 30 percent of its branch offices in Europe, the Times said.