Capital One to Cut 2,000 Jobs

Capital One Financial Corp. said yesterday it would eliminate about 2,000 jobs by the end of 2008 in an effort to cut $700 million in pretax operating expenses. About half the job cuts have already occurred according to the McLean, Va.-based bank. Cap One will have about 30,000 employees after the cuts.

The bank declined to specify what departments, programs or regions would be affected by the cuts. The bank operates more than 720 offices in five states.

Cap One announced that “The [job eliminations] will focus on structural changes and process re-engineering to improve operating efficiencies, streamline processes, and enable innovation and future revenue growth.”

Cap One was one of the largest credit card issuers in the nation that expanded into auto loans and retail banking with purchases of Hibernia Bank in New Orleans and North Fork Bank in New York State. It had $142 billion in managed loans outstanding at the end of the first quarter.