Citi announced on Wednesday it has completed the sale of Citi’s Vietnam retail banking and consumer credit card businesses to United Overseas Bank Limited (UOB), which includes the transfer of approximately 575 related staff.

The transaction is expected to result in a modest regulatory capital benefit to Citi.

Citi and UOB first announced the transaction in January 2022 as part of a broader sale agreement covering consumer banking across Malaysia, Thailand, Viet Nam, and Indonesia and excluding the bank’s institutional businesses. Sales in Malaysia and Thailand were completed on November 1, 2022.

Since announcing intentions to exit consumer banking across 14 markets in Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Mexico as part of its strategic refresh, Citi has signed sales agreements in nine markets and has now closed sales in six markets including Australia, Bahrain, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand, in addition to Viet Nam. The firm previously announced wind-downs of Citi’s consumer business in China and Korea, and the wind-down of Citi’s overall presence in Russia is in progress.

Citi Asia Pacific CEO Peter Babej said: “Today’s announcement is positive for our customers, our colleagues and our firm. Citi remains deeply committed to Viet Nam, and we will invest further to support institutional clients locally and across our global network. We thank former employees and customers for their commitment and support, and wish them continued success.”

Citi Legacy Franchises CEO Titi Cole said: “The completed sale of our consumer business in Viet Nam 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.” — VNS