Northern Rock cuts another 680 jobs

British nationalised lender Northern Rock said today that it expects a further 680 job losses by the end of the year as it moves to drive down its costs.

The UK taxpayer-owned bank, which recently posted an annual loss in 2010, said the cuts are necessary as it tries to return to profit and prepares for a return to private ownership.

Northern Rock was nationalised in February 2008 after it collapsed amid the credit crisis, sparking the first run on a UK bank for 150 years.

It employed a workforce of around 6,500 in 2007; this latest announcement reduces the workforce to fewer than 2,000.