Ticino-based Banca della Svizzera Italiana hasn’t been fully integrated into EFG International yet, but the Swiss bank is already set to slash jobs and dispose of assets.

EFG International has lifted its cost-cutting target for Lugano-based BSI to 240 million Swiss francs annually, from 185 million previously, the Zurich-based bank said in a statement ahead of its investor day.

Chief Executive Joachim Straehle plans several measures to reach this goal, but the bulk is to come from laying off bankers.

150 Jobs Per Year

From next year, the newly-merged bank will cut up to 150 jobs every year, Straehle said, until 2019. This means that EFG could cut as many as 450 jobs following the acquisition of BSI, which was shut down in Singapore due to its illicit dealings with Malaysian state fund 1MDB.

The cuts will happen across EFG and BSI, and largely focused in Switzerland. Zurich, Lugano and Geneva will remain the anchor sites for the bank.

The bank said it plans to use natural fluctuation as well as retirements options to reach the staff cuts.

Shutting Branches

EFG also plans to slash its spending through disposals and by closing booking centers, such as a BSI branch in Panama, which is set to shutter in the third quarter of next year.

A BSI client portfolio in the Bahamas has already been quietly sold.

Straehle’s fourth measure is to sell a platform of independent asset managers in the U.K.

Higher Deal Costs

The main reason behind the dramatic cuts are the costs to integrate BSI, which have crept upwards from EFG’s original forecast of 200 million Swiss francs. The bank now puts integration costs for BSI at 250 million by the end of 2018.

EFG also flagged an outflow of assets of roughly 10 billion francs in the next three years. This translates to a revenue shortfall of 69 million francs, compared to the 82 million that had been expected.

Asia Operations

The bank said that BSI's headline-making Singapore office – a former wealth planner is standing trial for forgery, money-laundering and witness tampering in relation to 1MDB and a former private banker pleaded guilty to charges including forgery – has already been integrated into EFG. At least one rival has taken advantage of the momentary weakness to pick off private bankers.

«The migration approach in Singapore will serve as a blueprint for other international locations,» EFG said in a statement. Hong Kong is slated to be integrated early next year.

The combination of the two banks, which will operate under the EFG International brand, means higher profit targets. EFG said it targets a pre-tax profit of 141 million francs.

The bank had previously forecast a profit accretion of 85 million following the deal.