German Citibank sold to French Credit Mutuel for $ 7.7 Billion

Regional French bank Credit Mutuel said on Friday that it will pay €4.9 billion ($7.7 billion) to buy the German business of US banking giant Citigroup, hard hit by the global financial crisis.

Credit Mutuel, which outmanoeuvred leading German bank Deutsche Bank with its bid and will pay cash, said: "With this major acquisition, Credit Mutuel...now takes on a significant position in Europe, thus opening up a second domestic market."

In Frankfurt, Citigroup said that the sale of its business in Germany, operating under the Citibank name, would yield a post-tax capital gain of about $4 billion.