StanChart reportedly culls energy M&A team

Standard Chartered threw in the towel after eight years of trying to build a global team focused on mergers and acquisitions in the energy space, Reuters reported citing unnamed sources.

The Asia-focused lender culled at least half a dozen oil and gas advisory roles in recent weeks as part of new chief Bill Winters's drive to reign in bloated employee expenses.

StanChart acquired Harrison Lovegrove, a boutique advisory unit in the oil and gas space, just before the financial crisis hit, bringing on more than two dozen bankers at the time.

Among those who had recently been shown the exit was the London-based head of the energy M&A team, Reuters said citing three people who were aware of the situation.

Plummeting global oil prices - which led national oil companies in particular to pull back from deal-making - and an increased regulatory burden also played a hand.

The bank was also thought be refocusing on generating revenues more from selling products to help companies making acquisitions to hedge their foreign exchange risks, which also avoids the sometimes lengthy time lags in generating advisory income.