UBS to cut headcount by 5,500 in subprime wake : US Business

ZURICH (Reuters) - Swiss bank UBS AG said it would cut 5,500 of its workforce, or almost 7 percent, through layoffs and attrition in the wake of the subprime credit crisis as it reverses a rapid expansion into investment banking.

UBS said conditions in the financial markets and the global economy remained difficult and reported a first-quarter loss of 11.535 billion Swiss francs, slightly better than what it had already announced in April.

The bank recorded negative outflows in its two wealth management businesses of 5.6 billion Swiss francs, UBS said on Tuesday in a statement.

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