One Zero Bank is shedding roughly a tenth of its workforce even as its financial results improve, a sign that digital lenders now view automation and artificial intelligence as permanent substitutes for headcount rather than temporary cost-cutting measures. The Israeli digital bank will lay off approximately 25 employees, about 7% of its roughly 350-person staff, while also leaving around 10 additional positions unfilled. Together, these moves will leave the bank operating with a workforce roughly 10% smaller than originally planned, even as it reports expanding revenue and a narrowing net loss.
Notifications went out to affected employees on Sunday morning, and CEO Eyal Gafni addressed the decision in a letter to staff, calling it difficult and acknowledging that those being let go were central to building the institution from its early days. The cuts are not concentrated in any single department; instead, the bank says it is adjusting staffing "wherever technology helps us accelerate processes," reflecting a broader industry pattern in which banks increasingly treat workforce planning as something to be continuously recalibrated alongside software capability. For customers navigating these transitions, understanding how a digital bank secures remote access and data flows matters more than ever, and resources such as detailed setup documentation on protecting online banking sessions have become increasingly relevant as more financial activity shifts entirely online. detailed setup documentation
A Pattern of Repeated Workforce Reductions
This marks the third round of layoffs at One Zero since early 2024, following cuts of more than 30 employees earlier that year and another 23 in September 2024, for a total exceeding 50 departures over the course of the year. What distinguishes this latest round is timing: previous reductions came amid financial strain, whereas this one arrives alongside genuine operational improvement. In the first half of 2026, revenue rose 33% to NIS 66 million, operating expenses fell 10% to NIS 149 million, and the net loss narrowed 27% to NIS 84 million. The bank's customer base has also surpassed 200,000, suggesting growth in scale without a corresponding expansion in staff.
Automation as Strategy, Not Just Savings
Gafni has framed the shift as structural rather than purely financial, describing a transition from an establishment phase to one requiring substantial growth without expanding operating costs. He pointed specifically to advances in generative AI and automation as tools for simplifying internal processes, though the bank has stopped short of claiming that laid-off employees are being directly replaced by algorithms. The distinction matters: rather than a one-to-one substitution, One Zero describes a leaner organizational structure made possible by automation absorbing tasks that once required dedicated staff. Salary costs fell 8.8% in 2025 to NIS 120 million, which the bank attributes to tightening budgetary discipline and adjusting its workforce mix.
What This Signals for the Digital Banking Sector
One Zero posted a loss of NIS 214 million in 2025, an improvement from NIS 268 million in 2024 and NIS 357 million in 2023, and the bank expects to turn profitable in 2027. Gafni said in August that the bank was nearing its first profitable month. The trajectory illustrates a broader tension facing digital-only banks: achieving profitability often depends on holding costs flat while usage and transaction volumes grow, a balance increasingly struck through automation rather than headcount expansion. As more financial institutions follow this model, questions about job security, retraining, and the pace of AI adoption in regulated industries are likely to intensify well beyond this single case.
