Citigroup, the world’s largest financial services organization, all set to buy the internet bank Egg from Prudential for £575m, a year after the insurer took 100 percent stakes in the business.
The sale price is almost 40 percent less than the value of the bank as Egg is loosing its consumer credit market in UK and facing the rising debts problem.
The deal will strengthen Citigroup’s presence in the UK retail banking market with 4 million customers, making it the eighth largest credit card provider.
Citigroup is hopeful to convert Egg into profitable quickly by merging information technology systems and using its expertise in lending to consumers with patchy credit histories to stem losses.
Citygroup plans to keep the Egg name and offer a broader range of products to UK customers. As part of the deal, Prudential signed a five-year deal to provide life assurance and pensions products to Egg’s base of more than 3m customers and Citigroup will distribute Prudential life assurance products in Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines.
via:independent
