According to a person familiar with the situation, Bank of America Corp. (NYSE:BAC) has instructed about 40 bankers in Asia to look for new positions inside the company as it moves to reduce expenses globally and make other cuts in light of the slowing Chinese dealmaking.

According to the source, the bank informed its employees in the Asia Pacific markets on Wednesday that they would need to hunt for new positions in other departments or regions of the business.

According to the person who asked to remain anonymous because the information is private, those who cannot secure another position inside the company within a short period would be laid off.

A few impacted bankers work in the banking and markets divisions, but most are junior bankers working in China’s capital markets for equities.

The bank, which had about 217,000 workers worldwide at the end of March, is looking to reduce personnel in this region while simultaneously attempting to maintain headcount globally due to stalled Chinese dealmaking and unimpressive prospects, the person said.

A spokesperson for the bank declined to comment.

Bloomberg first reported the move on Thursday.

A Bank of America official stated during the first quarter earnings that the company anticipates a reduction in global workforce to 213,000 by the end of June.

During a discussion in April, Chief Executive Brian Moynihan declared that the bank was “not laying people off” and would redeploy employees who needed to change positions.

Less than 200 wealth management and lending workers are being transferred to product expert positions inside the company’s global operations organisation as part of a similar strategy that is also being implemented in the Asia-Pacific region.