Mumbai: Citigroup Inc and HSBC Holdings PLC are among US and European banks planning to sell parts of their businesses - from branches to entire units - to head off a big crunch ahead, the Wall Street Journal reported on its website.

The report said Citigroup may sell or close several of its mid-size units while HSBC may exit all or part of its auto finance business, valued at around $13 billion.

Citigroup could dispose of as much as $12 billion worth of `noncritical assets', the report cited some executives as saying.

These may include Student Loan Corp., which is 80 per cent owned by the bank; its North American auto lending business; Brazilian credit card company Redecard SA, in which Citigroup held a 24 per cent stake as of September 30; and its Japanese consumer finance business, the report said.

Citigroup's new CEO Vikram Pandit, meanwhile, has proposed laying off about 20,000 employees and shedding some business lines as part of the efforts to streamline its operations, the report pointed out.

Citigroup had already planned a 5 per cent reduction in its workforce - or 17,000 jobs - and there have been talks of further cuts.

Citigroup employs over 300,000 people in over 100 countries.