Shuaa Capital cuts 9% of Dubai staff

Shuaa Capital's move to chop 9% of its Dubai staff makes it the first major local player to publicly acknowledge redundancies. More employees are also likely to be shifted to Saudi Arabia and Qatar, which the firm tips for growth in 2009.

After posting losses for two consecutive quarters, to leave it down Dh371m for the first six months of 2008, the bank has entered a consultation period with 21 of its Dubai-based staff this week.

The majority of the job losses will be in the back and middle office.

This marks an about turn for the bank which nearly doubled its staff numbers in the first half of this year - from 257 to 498 - and hiked up performance-related bonuses.

Iyad Duwaji, chief executive officer of Shuaa Capital, says: "Our approach to managing our expenses is driven by the reality imposed on us from external market conditions and how we see our businesses performing next year."

Not only is the firm focusing on Saudi and Qatar, it's also looking to grow its market share in brokerage and asset management, rather than investment banking, going into 2009.

Headhunters tell us that other local banks have been trimming staff numbers, but Shuaa is the first domestic player to publicly acknowledge redundancies.