Visa cuts 7% of staff as AI drives efficiency push
Visa is cutting about 7% of its workforce — roughly 2,600 jobs, mostly in technology and product operations — in an efficiency drive as CEO Ryan McInerney says artificial intelligence is helping reshape how work gets done. The payments giant plans to reinvest savings into growth areas while still citing strong financial momentum.
Key Takeaways
- Visa plans to eliminate about 2,600 positions, or roughly 7% of its staff, with cuts concentrated in technology and product operations.
- CEO Ryan McInerney said AI is helping accelerate how work evolves at Visa, though a person familiar with the matter said AI was a significant factor but not the only driver.
- The company aims to reinvest in growth areas such as affluent customers, cross-border payments, business remittances, stablecoins and geographic expansion.
- Visa reported recent net revenue of $11.6 billion, up 14% year over year, and had about 34,100 employees at the end of its last fiscal year.
How many Visa jobs are being cut and where?
According to a staff memo confirmed by CNBC, Visa will cut about 2,600 roles — nearly 7% of its global workforce. The reductions are expected mainly in technology and product teams.
Impacted employees were set to be contacted Tuesday for next steps and transition assistance. Visa had roughly 34,100 employees at the end of its most recent fiscal year, per reporting tied to the company's annual figures.
The San Francisco-based payments network has not confirmed how many California office workers will be affected, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Why is Visa cutting jobs if AI is reshaping work?
McInerney framed the move as part of evolving how Visa operates so it can lead industry transformation. "AI is also helping to accelerate this evolution and shape the way work gets done at Visa," he wrote in the memo.
A person with direct knowledge told CNBC that while AI played a significant role, it was not the sole driver. The cuts fit a broader pattern across finance and tech, where firms use AI to automate technical work such as software development and rein in costs after years of rapid hiring.
Visa also wants to free up resources to invest more in what it sees as higher-potential opportunities, including affluent customers, cross-border activity, business payments, stablecoins and geographic expansion.
Does this mean Visa's business is struggling?
Not based on the latest results cited in coverage. In its most recent earnings call on July 28, Visa reported net revenue of $11.6 billion, a 14% increase from the prior year, according to the Los Angeles Times.
McInerney pointed to strong financial results, client satisfaction and product momentum. Evercore ISI analysts, cited by Fox Business, said they do not view the cuts as a material event, describing them as reallocating headcount and costs into higher-growth areas.
The move comes months after rival Mastercard announced plans to lay off about 4% of its global workforce. For more on how AI is changing corporate workforces, explore Future Tech & AI Wonders on BlasterPost.