The Wall Street Journal reports that UBS is said to be planning to lay-off low-producing financial advisors in the US. The newspaper says that UBS Wealth Management US head Marten Hoekstra told staff of the planned lay-offs in a conference call last week.

Swiss newspaper NZZ am Sonntag also said Sunday that UBS has already started telling some staff their fate, as it comes to grips with its latest round of redundancies. The newspaper has previously reported that the bank will let an additional 8,000 staff go in the next round of lay-offs. Whilst Reuters reports that the firm is to cut 240 jobs across all lines of business in Asia. The cuts are thought to include 100 positions in Singapore.

And the market for financial advisors in the US, it seems, has cooled in recent week. The Journal reports that brokerage firms have now 'reduced the size' of transition packages to reflect the lower returns now expected from advisors in the light of the current economic downturn.

Reuters reports that, according to the Swiss media, Credit Suisse has started to close down the offshore accounts of US citizens. The move follows a general crackdown Stateside on alleged tax evasion.

And Financial News reports that staff in Dresdner Kleinwort's London-based equity research unit started to get letters last week confirming that they are 'at risk' of redundancy. The newspaper also reports that at least 6 of Merrill Lynch's 11-strong London-based global economics team have been cut since the beginning of the year, following the firm's merger with Bank of America.

Reuters reports that Northern Trust has laid-off 'the bulk' of its active International Equities fund management unit in London. The firm confirmed that although some analysts will continue to operate out of London, a recent restructure will mean that most fund management functions will now be based in Chicago.

Finally, some good news. The Financial Times reports that CLSA, the Asia-focused brokerage unit majority-owned by French bank Credit Agricole, is to hire 30 analysts in the US in the coming months, as it beefs up its operations there.

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