Is Macquarie about to start cutting in Asia?

Itís not just US and European banks which are axing in Asia, the Aussies are at it too.

Macquarie Group is said to be cutting about 10-15% of its Asian jobs, according to Reuters. The investment bank would not provide further details of any Asian layoffs, but it has already cut bonuses and shed some property and real estate staff in its domestic market.

Macquarie, which employs some 13,800 people worldwide, has traditionally been tight-lipped about revealing the exact extent of its redundancies, so don't expect any Citigroup-style grand plans. ìUnlike the other banks, they donít make public announcements and keep it all very quiet,î says one banking sector expert who asked not to be named.

At Macquarieís results briefing last week, chief executive Nicholas Moore said there is no group-wide job-reduction target, and individual divisions will manage their staffing levels depending on market conditions.

Front-office debt, equity and advisory roles are all still under pressure within i-banks in Asia such as Macquarie, says Andrew Price, director at Global Search Partners. Macquarie has built up a large corporate finance team in Singapore and some of these jobs may now be vulnerable.

Investment bankers who are laid off are currently facing the ìworst everî employment market in their industry and some may need to milk their contacts in private equity or leave financial services altogether, says Price.

ìAmazingly, some of them still think they can get another job in investment banking, so Iím struggling to know what to suggest to them. Some of these young guys with Harvard MBAs just havenít thought about anything outside i-banking,î he adds.

Despite continued pressure on its debt-financed infrastructure model, Macquarie is at least in better shape than its Wall Street i-banking rivals. It reported a first-half