Scandal-hit bank HSBC has announced it would cut its global headcount by up to 50,000 as part of a restructuring that entails its withdrawal from Brazil and Turkey, while it also mulls abandoning London as its headquarters.

In a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange, the bank said it intends to save $5 billion in annual costs within two years.

The announcement comes ahead of an investor update later on Tuesday in which chief executive Stuart Gulliver is expected to announce thousands of job losses.

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Brazil’s economy is on the rise, but HSBC may be moving to other markets. Photo: AAP

“HSBC is now undertaking a significant reshaping of its business portfolio,” the bank, which this year marks its 150th anniversary, said.

“It is redeploying resources to capture expected future growth opportunities and adapting to structural changes in the operating climate.”

The statement did not mention extensive job cuts, the details of which were buried in an investor update report.

That report said there would be a 10 per cent reduction in jobs, with between 22,000 and 25,000 classified under “transformation savings”, including streamlining IT projects.

A further 25,000 jobs would be lost with the selling of operations in Turkey and Brazil.

The move is the latest in a series of swinging cuts under Mr Gulliver, who joined at the beginning of 2011.

Staff numbers have dropped from 295,000 in 2010 to a projection of 208,000 by 2017.

The bank added that it would focus more on Asia, particularly the Pearl River Delta, and set up a ring-fenced British bank.

It also expects to complete a review of where to locate its headquarters by the end of this year.

Mr Gulliver has said the lender may relocate due to increased British regulation and taxation of the banking sector.

Move to Hong Kong HQ ‘likely’, analysts say

Hong Kong already has a large HSBC presence. Photo: AAP

Financial analyst and associate director for Simsen Financial Group Jackson Wong described Tuesday’s announcement as a “decisive move”.

“It’s a big cut … (but) they haven’t been able to save costs over the past few years,” Mr Wong said.

He added the bank was likely to relocate its headquarters to Hong Kong, owing to its low tax regime.

“The chance is pretty high for Hong Kong,” he said.

But analyst Francis Lun said the cuts may be too severe.

“They may have overdone it. If you cut the jobs any further … you cannot get the job done,” he said.

Swiss prosecutors on Thursday closed an investigation into allegations HSBC’s Geneva branch helped clients evade millions of dollars in taxes, after it agreed to pay $56 million in compensation.

Geneva authorities opened the probe in February following the publication of secret documents claiming the bank assisted many wealthy clients in thwarting the taxman.

Last year, it was separately fined by US and British regulators for attempting to rig foreign exchange markets.