DBS Bank acquires Citi’s Taiwan consumer businesses

By Gloria Mathias

Citi has announced the successful completion of the sale and full migration of its Taiwan consumer businesses to DBS.

The sale includes retail banking, credit card, mortgage, unsecured lending businesses, and the transfer of nearly 3,000 employees. The transaction is expected to have a regulatory capital benefit of approximately $1.2 billion.

Citi’s institutional client businesses in Taiwan are excluded from the sale, and the company is focused on serving institutional clients in Taiwan locally, regionally, and globally.

The company has signed sales agreements in nine markets and has closed sales in eight markets, including Australia, Bahrain, India, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam, with Taiwan.

Peter Babej, Citi Asia Pacific CEO said, “As we conclude the sale of our consumer business in Taiwan, we remain committed to growing our market-leading institutional franchise and supporting clients in the market and across the region through our global network.”

The previously announced wind-downs of Citi’s consumer business in China and Korea and overall presence in Russia are in progress. Citi also announced that it will pursue an IPO of its consumer, small business, and middle market banking operations in Mexico.

Titi Cole, Citi Legacy Franchises CEO said, “We are sincerely grateful to our former employees for their steadfast commitment to clients and are confident that they’ll have a great future with DBS. We have made significant progress in executing Citi’s strategy, and completing this transaction is another important step forward in simplifying the firm.”

Citi is a banking partner for institutions with cross-border needs, a global provider of wealth management and a valued personal bank in its home market of the United States. Citi does business in 160 countries and jurisdictions, providing corporations, governments, investors, institutions, and individuals with a broad range of financial products and services.