Bank profits are expected to rise in 2017, driven by expectations for higher interest rates, lower corporate taxes and less restrictive regulation under President Trump. However, this is cold comfort for bank employees, as a drive to cut costs through automation remains in full swing, with significant job reductions still on the horizon.

HAVE BANKS HIT PEAK HUMAN?    During the first 10 months of 2016, banks eliminated some 19,400 positions – admittedly a fraction of the 600,000 jobs lost since the financial crisis of 2008. But the worst may be yet to come.

A research report from Citigroup in March forecasted the elimination of 1.8 million bank jobs in the U.S. and Europe within the next 10 years. Advances in cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) are replacing humans with computer algorithms in a growing number of highly skilled roles. Thus, the future job losses will go far beyond low-paid tellers and back office clerks.

Take, for example, “robo-advisers.” These automated portfolio managers are already overseeing about $50 billion of assets - a tiny sliver of the $20 trillion wealth management market, but it is growing rapidly, even among wealthy clients with $1 million or more to invest. Morgan Stanley, BofA, and Wells Fargo are under increasing pressure to justify their fees, and developing robo-adviser alternatives is an obvious option. These firms collectively employ about 46,000 human financial advisers.

HIRING BRIGHT SPOTS.    If there is any bright spot on the horizon for hiring at banks, it is for programmers who can design such expert systems. Additionally, big banks are investing in financial technology (fintech) startups, partnering with them, or even acquiring them.