“The bank has formally approached the central bank for sale of its retail business in Pakistan,” a source at HSBC told Pakistani publication The News International.

Meanwhile Business Recorder wrote that local players MCB and KASB have shown interest in buying the global bank’s Pakistan business. HSBC said it declined to comment on speculation.

HSBC has had a presence in Pakiston for three decades, and currently has seven branches. The bank previously dismissed reports of a sale of its operations in the region.

HSBC is beating a retreat from areas where it does not have a strong presence, as part of its strategy to focus its capital and resources on the growth of its core businesses. Last month it said it was in talks to sell its wealth management and retail banking business in Mauritius. It also signed a deal to sell 80 per cent of its Middle East private equity business to Havenvest Partners.

Earlier this month, HSBC agreed to offload its general insurance manufacturing portfolios in Hong Kong, Singapore, Argentina and Mexico to AXA and QBE in separate deals valued at $914 million. It has also sold businesses in Japan, Thailand and South Korea.

The bank’s wide-reaching cost-cutting programme and global restructuring will impact around 30,000 jobs, as chief executive Stuart Gulliver attempts to rein in costs in a difficult trading environment.