Citigroup to sell its retail banking unit in Japan to Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp.

TOKYO – Citigroup has agreed to sell its retail banking business in Japan to Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp.

Citigroup said in a statement Thursday that the two sides have reached agreement on selling Citibank Japan's retail branches and ATMs to a trust bank subsidiary of SMBC. The deal includes 740,000 customer accounts and about 2.5 trillion yen (about $21 billion) worth of yen and foreign currency accounts.

It said about 1,600 Citibank Japan employees in Japan will also be transferred to SMBC, one of three Japanese mega-banks.

Citigroup did not give a total value for the deal, which will close in late 2015. The company also is considering selling its credit card business in Japan, separately, as it streamlines its global banking and focuses on corporate and investment banking, and other services.