A man wearing a face mask walks past a bronze lion statue at the HSBC headquarters in Hong Kong, July 11, 2022. (KIN CHEUNG / AP)

LONDON - HSBC has identified $1.7 billion of extra costs that can be stripped out next year, Chief Executive Noel Quinn said.

The cuts - on top of existing targeted savings - are needed to help HSBC control costs amid high inflation, Quinn told a Financial Times conference in London, adding the bank's overall target of costs rising 2 percent next year remained unchanged.

At third quarter earnings in October, HSBC estimated it would make $1 billion of additional savings in 2023. The extra cuts will include closing down portfolios, but most planned job cuts were already in place, Quinn said

"That's how I'm going to deliver 2 percent," Quinn said. "I'm not going to pretend it's easy."

At third quarter earnings in October, HSBC estimated it would make $1 billion of additional savings in 2023. The extra cuts will include closing down portfolios, but most planned job cuts were already in place, Quinn said.

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The bank has stepped up moves to trim underperforming businesses, agreeing the sale of its Canadian retail bank to RBC this week and kick-starting a review of its consumer operations in New Zealand.

Hong Kong

Quinn also reiterated his faith in the bank's second home of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

"I also believe Hong Kong will remain an international financial center," Quinn said, adding the hub was likely to remain the best international capital market for Chinese mainland companies.

Quinn said he planned to stay at the helm of the bank for "many more years" to see his plans through, if the board remained happy with his efforts.

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He also reiterated his sceptical stance on cryptocurrencies, saying the bank had no plans to go into offering crypto to retail investors nor to start a trading desk for digital currencies, in contrast to some other big banks.