Analysis: High costs, delays, and tough timing vex Barclays' Asia plan

Three years into Barclays' costly global expansion from fixed-income shop to full investment bank, the Asia leg of the build-out is struggling to gain ground on its rivals.

Barclays hired an A-list of veteran and expensive Asia investment bankers after the 2008 financial crisis, with the hope of forming a banking and equities business that would put them in the same league as Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley.