* Between 7,000 and 8,000 jobs to go in UK
* CEO says too early to say if group will keep UK business
* Control over dividend, strategy key factor in decision
* To consult with staff, customers over planned name change
By Matt Scuffham
LONDON, June 9 (Reuters) - HSBC said it would cutup to 8,000 British jobs and rebrand its UK retail banking unit,which it could sell in response to new rules stating suchbusinesses must be separate from investment banking in order toprotect customers.
HSBC CEO Stuart Gulliver said on Tuesday that between 7,000and 8,000 jobs, or about one in six of its staff, would be cutby "natural attrition." He said staff turnover in the businesswas about 3,000 a year.
Industry sources have said the business, which is beingrelocated to Birmingham, central England, could be re-brandedunder the Midland banner and spun off.
Gulliver said the group could not make a decision on whetherto keep the business until it knew whether regulators wouldallow HSBC to continue to have a say in its future strategy,such as dividend policy.
Britain's financial regulator is continuing to consult withbanks about the changes. Its rules requiring banks to separatetheir retail operations from riskier investment activities aredue to be implemented on Jan. 1, 2019.
"We will need to see how the PRA (Prudential RegulationAuthority) looks at the implementation of the legislation,"Gulliver told investors in a strategy update.
"The question for us will be around our ability to controlthe dividend coming from the ring-fenced bank and to make surethat the strategy of the ring-fenced bank is complimentary tothe strategy of the group," he said.
HSBC, whose other brands include First Direct and M&S Bank,said in March that it would base its British retail andcommercial banking business in Birmingham in central England.
The group's British roots stem from that city after itbought Midland Bank in 1992 and subsequently moved headquartersto London from Hong Kong in 1993.
Gulliver said the bank would consult with staff andcustomers over the next few months on the future name of thebusiness. Midland has been seen as a front-runner, according toindustry sources.
"We will operate with a different brand name. We haven'tdecided what that brand name will be and we're going to consultcustomers and our own staff over the next few months to decidewhat we might call this bank," Gulliver said.
HSBC also set out 11 criteria it will use to evaluatewhether to move its headquarters out of London to Asia, likelyHong Kong.
London mayor Boris Johnson urged the bank not to move.
"This is why I urge people not to bash banks. They are hugeemployers in our city," he said on LBC radio. (Reporting by Matt Scuffham; Editing by Sophie Walker)
HSBC Holdings (HSBA)