Gadgets add complexity to brutal bank layoffs

BRUTAL LAYOFFS: The crackdown on fired employees has taken on new relevance after a series of banking scandals such as the rigging of Libor interest rates. Records of e-mail messages and voice mail underpinned a case by regulators against Barclays for manipulating Libor, which was settled in June. — Reuters

LONDON: In the high-tech, gadget-addicted world of investment banking, layoffs are becoming more complex and brutal as firms try to stop sensitive data leaving with employees.

Sackings are usually swift, with bankers escorted out, a few belongings thrown into boxes and Blackberries and phones disabled the minute they get their marching orders.