Sources familiar with the matter were quoted by Reuters as saying that the bank may slash 3,700 employees, implement payment curbs on senior bankers and shut non-core operations across the globe to deal with the growing regulatory pressure.
The retail banking operations in the UAE, which is under scrutiny, comprises personal banking, lending, mortgage services, and a credit card business, with a work force of nearly 500 and 1,000 people, the new agency reported.
The internal review, which is currently in its introductory stage, does not guarantee that it will result in the sale of the business, and no consultants or financial advisers have been appointed yet to find potential buyers, the sources said.
"You would expect the local banks to be the most likely buyers of retail banking business in the region. We have seen that in the past and most of them are in an expansion mode," the source told the news portal.
Under the leadership of its chief executive Anthony Jenkins, who joined in August 2012, the bank has stopped speculative trading in agricultural commodities and closed a profitable tax advisory business.
Managing operations in 50 nations with the help of 140,000 staff, Barclays offers personal banking, credit cards, corporate and investment banking and wealth and investment management services in Europe, the Americas, Africa and Asia.
