Putin gives green light to Citi exit in Russia as part of bank’s global reorganization
Russian President Vladimir Putin signed an order Wednesday morning authorizing Citigroup (C) to sell its Russia-based division to emerging markets investment bank Renaissance Capital.
“With this receipt of the final Russian approval required by Renaissance Capital, Citi now prepares to expeditiously complete the final stages of its preparation to transfer the operations to the buyer and obtain the remaining necessary approvals,” a Citigroup spokesperson said in emailed comments.
Earlier on Wednesday, Citigroup confirmed approval from the Russian presidential office for the potential sale.
Citi stock rose 2.6% Wednesday morning. That’s up 47% so far in 2025.
Citigroup first announced plans to sell its Russian consumer business in 2021, but decided to shed its entire Russia-based subsidiary – known as AO Citibank – following the outbreak of the Russo-Ukrainian war the following year.
Sanctions and other complexities of the international transaction made selling the unit outright difficult for years.
“Citi terminated nearly all institutional banking services offered in Russia on March 31, 2023. Today, our services are only those necessary to fulfill our remaining legal and regulatory obligations as we continue to wind down our operations in Russia,” a Citigroup spokesperson said in an emailed statement.
At the end of September, the bank had about $11.7 billion in client exposures to Russia, the majority of which were corporate dividends that the Russian government would not allow Citi to pay.
The deal is still subject to additional approvals from U.S. regulators and would include whatever remains of Citi’s consumer and institutional businesses in the country.
Putin’s signing of the deal marks further progress in one part of the US banking giant’s radical transformation effort under CEO Jane Fraser, which included plans to offload 14 different banking units around the world.
This comes weeks after Citi’s board voted to make her chairman of the bank’s board while giving her a $25 million bonus in restricted stock. The moves were widely seen by Wall Street as the board’s satisfaction with the progress of the bank’s turnaround and a consolidation of Fraser’s power over the megabank.
Citigroup has sold nine different international subsidiaries since Fraser became boss, with the end goal of cutting the bank’s costs and increasing its profitability. The group is awaiting the final completion of the sale of its Polish subsidiary. Alongside the Russian group, the bank aims to end its operations in Korea and China.
