Citi has completed the sale of its Vietnam banking and consumer credit card businesses to United Overseas Bank (UOB), in a transaction first announced in January 2022. Its India consumer business has been sold to Axis Bank (Axis), in a deal announced in March 2022.
Citi is expected to receive “a modest regulatory capital benefit” from its sale in Vietnam, the bank says, with approximately 575 Citi employees joining UOB. Axis will gain approximately 3200 employees, with the transaction expected to result in a US $1.4 billion regulatory capital benefit for Citi.
The deals are part of Citi’s “strategic refresh”, with the company leaving consumer banking in 14 markets across Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Mexico. Wind-downs are also in progress in Citi’s consumer business in China, Korea and Russia.
Sales have already been closed in five markets, namely Australia, Bahrain, the Philippines, Malaysia and Thailand, with the latter two also acquired by UOB on 1 November 2022. Sales agreements have been signed in nine further markets.
Peter Babej, CEO of Citi APAC, says: “Citi remains deeply committed to Vietnam, and India remains a critical institutional market for [the company]. In line with our broader strategic repositioning, we will continue to support our institutional clients in this core market and across APAC, delivering the full power of our global network to enable their growth."
Titi Cole, CEO of Citi legacy franchises, comments: “The completed sale of our consumer business in Vietnam puts us one step closer to delivering on our divestiture mandate as part of the firm’s strategy refresh. We are confident that our former employees have a bright future at UOB, and we look forward to seeing them thrive.”
