The precise future shape of the business will be determined after a formal consultation with Unite, the union which represents its employees, and other relevant parties, the London-based, FTSE 100-listed bank said in a statement.
According to the Gibraltar Chronicle, Barclays employes around 100 people in Gibraltar, most of whom are local residents.
Barclays said it took the decision to scale back its Gib operations after a review begun four months ago found that continuing to serve its customers and clients in that market would require a “significant investment in infrastructure” that it said it did "not believe…would be in the best interests of our wider stakeholders".
Efforts to find a buyer for the business over the last few months that would be willing to make the investment necessary to take the business forward had been unsuccessful, in spite of having engaged with more than 50 "prospective interested parties", Barclays said.
Barclays has had a presence on the "Rock" for 125 years.
The news that Barclays would be reducing its Gibraltar presence came the day after it announced a £5.8bn rights issue, aimed at plugging a hole in its capital holdings. The news caused the bank's shares to fall around 6% in London, although some analysts saw it as a positive sign and predicted other lenders would follow suit.
'More encouraging outcome'
Many Gibraltarians had feared Barclays would announce a full-scale closedown in spite of its century-plus in the community, so the announcement that intends merely to scale down its presence "opened the door for a more encouraging outcome", the Gibraltar Chronicle newspaper said, in a story on its website today.
It noted that UK Members of Parliament and representatives from the Gibraltar Chamber of Commerce had been involved in last-minute talks with Barclays officials on the bank's future in the UK territory.
Among the unanswered questions at this point, the Gibraltar Chronicle article noted, was whether Barclays would keep its Main Street branch open.
It reported that Nigel Riley, the bank's local manager, will oversee the transition process over the next six months, "after which Keith Bailey, a UK-based Barclays manager who, for seven years, oversaw parts of the bank's business here, will take the helm".
Gib government response
In a statement, the Gibraltar government said it welcomed the confirmation from Barclays that it intended to retain a presence in Gibraltar.
"The government will continue to work…to minimise any disruption to the sector and to the employees at the bank, and will continue its discussions with the senior management at the bank to assist wherever possible in meeting these aims," the statement added.
