Close Brothers to cut almost quarter of workforce in wake of car finance scandal

Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell, said: “Close Brothers has swerved off the road with its latest results as profits crashed and it announced 600 job cuts.

“The lender is still spinning from Viceroy’s short-selling report that alleged Close Brothers has not put enough money aside to cover potential liabilities from the car finance mis-selling scandal.

“It was telling that the share price didn’t recover any of yesterday’s slump after Close Brothers denied the accusations were true, suggesting the market remains highly sceptical over the business until there is clarity on any compensation sums.

“Job cuts and guidance for higher than previously expected annual cost savings would normally be the right ingredients to drive a share price higher, but not in Close Brothers’ case. The core business doesn’t look strong enough to warrant investors taking the risk of buying in the face of considerable uncertainty.”