Barclays to cut 3,700 jobs in new strategy

Barclays announced Tuesday it will cut 3,700 jobs as it attempts to rebuild its image and cut costs. 

Executive Antony Jenkins, chief of Britain's third largest bank, announced the plan, "Project Transform," as part of an effort to correct the bank's high-risk culture and champion ethical investing.

"Barclays is changing. There will be no going back to the old way of doing things. We are changing the way we do business, we are changing the type of business we do," Jenkins said.

The bank was fined about $450 million in June for its part in the LIBOR interest rate-rigging scandal, according to the BBC. Barclays was also involved in mis-selling payment protection insurance, the Guardian reported.  

"I understand why there is cynicism and skepticism out there given the track record of banks in the past. You should judge us by what we deliver in the next one, two, five or ten years," Jenkins said at a news conference.

The New York Times DealBook points out the move comes after a difficult year for Barclays.

"Barclays reported a net loss of £835 million ($1.3 billion) in the last three months of 2012, compared with a profit of £356 million ($557 million) in the period a year earlier. For the full year, the bank reported a net loss of £1 billion ($1.57 billion), compared with a £3 billion ($4.71 billion) profit for the previous year."

The bank will cut 1,800 corporate and investment banking jobs and 1,900 jobs from its European retail and business banking, according to the BBC.

Reuters reported positive reactions from investors, as the plan will cut more than $2 billion in annual costs.