Danish banks sending thousands of jobs to low-wage countries

India is in charge of IT, whilst eastern Europe takes care of bank loans

Pia Marsh

According to new data from Finans, Danske Bank, Nordea and a number of other major financial institutions, Danish banks have shifted more than 3,400 jobs to low-wage countries in an effort to reduce costs.

Eastern European countries such as Lithuania and Poland are increasingly handling customer bank loans, whilst India is taking charge of IT management.

Loss of Danish jobs
Experts are beginning to voice their concerns over the number of Danish jobs being discontinued as a result of the outsourcing.

“We are concerned about losing Danish jobs to Poland and Lithuania. One must wonder why it happens, but it is obvious that it is because these countries can produce significantly cheaper services,” Kent Petersen, the chairman of the financial services union, told Finans.

“It’s hard to see where it will stop. The fact that so many jobs are digitalised means that companies can move their services straight to where it is cheaper,” he continued.

In the last two and a half years, Danske Bank has moved 850 jobs to Lithuania, as well as acquiring 750 IT professionals in India.

This is equivalent to 9 percent of the bank’s total staff, or 15 percent of the company’s employees in Denmark.

Necessary to retain competitive advantage
Anne Melchiorsen, the vice president of Danske Bank, said the decision to outsource is a necessary step for the company in order to retain an efficient business.

“First and foremost, we are an international company, and we must continue to deliver competitive solutions to our customers. It is about delivering products at the right price,” Melchiorsen told Finans.

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