Bank of Montreal’s (BMO) capital markets division has cut 100 jobs, or about 4% of its workforce, as deal activity remains weak both in Canada and internationally.
About half of the job cuts at BMO Capital Markets are in Canada, with the other half occurring at the bank’s foreign offices.
Globally, the value of initial public offerings (IPOs) and mergers and acquisitions (M&A) have fallen more than 40% this year to $1.2 trillion U.S., according to industry data.
Canadian companies have announced only a handful of mergers and acquisitions worth about $1 billion so far in 2023.
Equity deals also remain weak, with proceeds from all financings on the Toronto Stock Exchange down 69% in the first five months of the year at $3.3 billion, according to exchange operator TMX Group (X).
Canada’s banks hired aggressively during the 2021 and early 2022 bull market. BMO Capital Markets added about 400 staff over the past two years.
The dearth of deals led to a 24% decline in BMO Capital Markets earnings in its most recent quarter, declining to $380 million.
Bank of Montreal’s stock has decreased 5% in the last 12 months to $118.13 per share.
