American Express is trimming about five percent of its global workforce as the credit card giant pivots toward a future driven by artificial intelligence. During a third quarter earnings call on Friday, CEO Stephen Squeri revealed that the company is eliminating thousands of positions and taking a 336 million dollar restructuring charge to streamline operations. With nearly 77,000 employees on its books at the end of last year, the move signals a significant shift in how the firm intends to manage its internal processes moving forward.

Chief Financial Officer Christophe Le Caillec explained that these cuts are designed to make the organization leaner and more agile, arguing that it makes little sense to automate inefficiently structured processes. By reducing management layers and expanding control spans now, Le Caillec believes the company will be better positioned to integrate AI tools in the coming quarters and years. This strategy mirrors a wider pattern within the financial sector, following similar announcements from Barclays, which recently cut roughly five percent of its own staff to prioritize tech driven cost savings.

Despite the layoffs, American Express continues to see strong financial health, reporting quarterly profits that exceeded Wall Street expectations. The company actually raised its full year earnings guidance thanks to resilient consumer spending and strategic asset sales. While Squeri spent considerable time discussing how AI will personalize customer experiences and offers for cardholders, he remained cautious about security. He emphasized that while they embrace innovation, they will not allow autonomous agents to run rogue through their systems without strict secure protocols.