LONDON, April 29 (Reuters) - HSBC Holdings isselling its half stake in the South Korean insurance firm HanaHSBC Life Insurance Co to its partner in the venture, the 52nddeal it has struck as part of a global retreat from peripheralbusinesses in the past two years.
Chief Executive Stuart Gulliver wants to cut $3.5 billion inannual costs and make HSBC less complex, and has been unwindingmany deals or exiting countries and businesses where it isunprofitable or lacks critical mass.
HSBC did not disclose financial details of the deal, but itpaid $58 million pounds for the stake of 50 percent minus oneshare when it signed the joint venture with Hana Financial Group in March 2008.
It said on Monday it was selling the stake back to Hana, oneof South Korea's largest financial firms.
Many of its sales have reversed what had been a broadexpansion into insurance. Last week HSBC sold its generalinsurance business in Macau, and it has also sold a minoritystake in Chinese insurer Ping An for $9.4 billion.
Hana HSBC Life had gross assets of about $2.5 billion at theend of last year and HSBC said the deal should complete on May10.
The bank said it remained committed to the Korean market andcontinued to invest in developing its investment bankingbusiness there.
HSBC Holdings (HSBA)