About 5,000 UK and Ireland jobs are on threat due to MBNA’s sale

MBNA is one of the leading credit card contributors in Europe, with some $19bn in loans. It has employees based in Chester and Carrick-on-Shannon

Equal to 5,000 jobs are at hazard in the UK after Bank of America's conclusion to exit its MBNA credit card dealing. A further 1,000 career are under risk in Ireland, where the company has insistently followed market share since launching 14 years ago.

MBNA says to be the biggest credit card giver in Europe with some $19bn (£11.6bn) in loans across the MBNA brand and a number of "affinity" own-brand cards for companies varying from Ryanair, Arsenal and lastminute.com to the RSPCA, London Irish and London Wasps rugby clubs.

The bank said the move to quit the UK and Ireland was taken as part of policy of building a "fortress balance sheet" and to enhance its capital ratios by stripping itself of non-core assets.

"Even as the credit card remains a basic core product for our US customers, a global consumer card business under another brand is not steady with that planning," said chief executive officer Brian Moynihan.

The bank is upholding its US credit card business but is trenching foreign units. On Monday, it sold its Canadian MBNA unit to Toronto Dominion and it has also made contract to sell its Spanish business.

Staff in Chester and in Carrick-on-Shannon in Ireland erudite the news after being identified to a meeting at lunchtime on Monday. Some in Ireland demonstrated against the lack of information, saying they listen to the news first from concerned US relatives who had phoned to see if their jobs were safe.

Workers now face an unsure few months as they to wait to hear whether Bank of America can locate a buyer.

The bank started operations in Chester 18 years ago. Steve Robinson, chief executive of Cheshire West and Chester council, said he anticipated a buyer could be discovered.

"We will be awfully sad to lose this company, which has turned into a real part of Chester since it arrived 18 years ago. It will certainly be kept in mind for a long time for the main role it has played in the life of the city," he told the Chester Chronicle.

"We are, certainly, ready to do everything possible to reception the new holders and support them to maintain present levels of employment," he added.