NatWest removes 1,000 roles in Q3 as staff AI use rises 66%

British bank NatWest Group said in its third-quarter results on Friday, 30 October 2026 that it removed about 1,000 full-time roles during July to September, taking job cuts to roughly 1,400 so far this year, as part of an efficiency programme in which artificial intelligence (AI) plays a growing role. The bank said staff use of AI tools rose 66% in the quarter. Chief executive Paul Thwaite said AI is creating new roles dedicated to the technology while changing others, although he has previously told British MPs that he sees no "direct link" between using technology and removing jobs.

Banks are among the biggest employers of office workers who handle documents, customer queries, checks and reports, exactly the tasks that AI tools are getting better at. When a large bank reports both a sharp rise in staff AI use and a fall in roles in the same quarter, it is a real-world signal of how AI is changing white-collar work, even if the bank says the two are not directly linked.

The picture is more mixed than a simple story of AI replacing people. NatWest's total workforce actually grew because of an acquisition, and the bank says new AI-related jobs are being created. What is changing is the type of work: fewer people in routine processing, and more who can build, manage and check AI systems, or who use them to serve customers faster. Another British bank, Barclays, has also announced job cuts that it linked to AI.

For Indian readers, this matters directly. Many global banks, including British ones, run large technology and operations centres in India, often called global capability centres, and Indian IT companies provide services to them. Decisions made in London about automation shape the kinds of jobs those centres offer. Workers who can combine banking knowledge with practical AI skills are likely to be in demand, while purely routine back-office roles face pressure.

Short-term: Affected staff at NatWest face redundancy or redeployment. Investors are likely to welcome lower costs, while unions and politicians in Britain may press the bank on how it handles AI-related changes.

Long-term: If AI keeps raising productivity, banks may need fewer people for routine work and more for technology, risk and customer roles. Training programmes will decide how many existing staff can move into the new jobs.

Who is affected: NatWest employees, bank workers and IT-services staff in the UK and India, students considering careers in banking and finance, and the bank's customers.

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