British bank HSBC Holdings PLC reportedly agreed to sell its 8% stake in Bank of Shanghai Co. to Spain's Banco Santander SA. HSBC is exiting its minority investments to boost profitability.

Bloomberg in a report said that HSBC didn't disclose a price for the shareholding. Its stake in Bank of Shanghai is valued at about USD468 million. HSBC paid around USD63 million for the stake in 2001.

HSBC chief executive officer Stuart Gulliver has closed or sold at least 54 businesses since taking the top job in 2011. Under his leadership, HSBC is cutting costs and focusing on places where it is most profitable, the report said.

HSBC is the biggest foreign bank in China by assets and branch network. It boosted its China profit by about 12% to CNY3.8 billion (USD626 million) last year. HSBC operates 150 outlets in mainland China, Bloomberg said.

HSBC Asia Pacific chief executive Peter Wong in a statement said that the British lender will continue expanding its business in China through Shanghai-based Bank of Communications. HSBC owns a 19% stake in the country's fifth-largest bank, the report said.