Investment bank Credit Suisse is looking to outsource over half of the 5000 IT jobs at its operations in Switzerland to cheaper offshore centres, according to press reports.
According to a report by Swiss Sunday newspaper SonntagsZeitung the bank is planning to offshore 50-70% of IT jobs in Switzerland under plans to SFr2.5 billion in cost savings.
The report, which cites internal sources, says that Credit Suisse has officially denied the speculation and claims to have 220 IT vacancies in Switzerland right now. But these jobs are thought to be mainly for highly qualified staff. Jobs requring fewer qualifications and less experience are likely to be shifted to the bank's offshore centre in Pune, India, says the report.
In May last year the bank created 900 IT, operations and finance jobs at its offshore centre in Singapore. Reports also surfaced earlier in the year that Credit Suisse was shifting 5000 IT, back office and administrative jobs to cheap offshore centres in eastern Europe, Singapore and India as part of global cost cutting programme.
Earlier this month the Swiss bank put pen to paper on a five-year, £578 million telecommunications outsourcing agreement with BT.