Bermuda-based insurer Tower Group International Ltd is cutting about 140 jobs, or 10 percent of its global workforce, after it posted a second-quarter loss of more than half a billion dollars.

It is not clear whether any of its Bermuda employees will be affected. The company did not respond to an e-mailed request for comment over the weekend.

The company has been domiciled on the Island since March this year when US insurer Tower Group, Inc (TGI) merged with Canopius Holdings Bermuda Ltd, which was then renamed Tower Group International Ltd and became the ultimate parent company.

The job cuts will save about $21 million a year, Tower said on Friday.

Tower said the loss attributable to common shareholders was $507.3 million, or $8.88 a share, in the quarter ended June 30. The release of results was delayed to give the company more time to evaluate its reserves.

Tower is exploring the sale of assets and the possibility of raising capital after downgrades by rating firms. The company’s stock has plunged 75 percent this year to $3.92.

“We are deeply disappointed by our second-quarter operating results, including the significant reserve charge as well as the delay in our financial reporting,” chief executive officer Michael Lee said in Friday evening’s earnings statement.

“Our board continues to review various strategic options, and management is continuing to address the challenges presented by the current situation. The recent downgrades in our ratings from AM Best and other rating agencies represent a new challenge to us.

“To manage this, we are continuing to underwrite our core business of homeowners and small commercial business that are less ratings sensitive, and evaluating various options to retain certain of our ratings sensitive business by placing it with other highly rated insurance companies.

“To address current liquidity needs at the holding company, we are exploring the sale of some of our holding company and operating assets as well as exploring the possibility of raising additional capital. We are working diligently to address these challenges.”

He added: “The reserve strengthening stemmed primarily from certain types of business that we underwrote from accident years 2008 to 2011.

“While we began to re-underwrite this business in 2010, the loss emergence from this business from those accident years that we noticed in the second quarter caused us to significantly increase our reserve position.

“The type of business that contributed to the reserve strengthening comprised 39 percent of our business in 2008, and we reduced this percentage to three percent in the first half of 2013. Due to this re-underwriting and rate increases that we are achieving in most of the other segments of our business, we believe our current business that we are underwriting is performing well.”