Citigroup has completed its long‑planned exit from Russia by selling its entire retail and corporate banking business to the Moscow‑based investment bank Renaissance Capital, a transaction authorized by a presidential order signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin on November 12, 2025.
The sale concludes a wind‑down that began in August 2022 when Citigroup announced it would close its consumer and local commercial banking activities in the country. Over the next three years the bank shut its last retail branch in Moscow in late 2024 and stopped all savings‑account operations by October 2025, leaving only a small corporate footprint that is now being transferred.
Under the deal, Citigroup will transfer all of its Russian retail and corporate banking assets, deposits, and branch network to Renaissance Capital, which will assume the regulatory licenses and customer relationships. The transaction terms, including the purchase price, were not disclosed, and the deal is expected to affect roughly 2,300 Citigroup employees who will be absorbed by the buyer.
The divestiture aligns with CEO Jane Fraser’s strategy to streamline Citigroup’s global footprint and concentrate on higher‑returning markets. By shedding its Russian operations, the bank reduces exposure to geopolitical risk and regulatory uncertainty, freeing capital and management attention for its Services, Markets, and Wealth businesses.
Financially, Citigroup’s Russian unit had generated about $32 million in revenue in Q1 2022, and its loan portfolio had shrunk by 98 percent by 2025. The sale removes a small but politically sensitive asset from the bank’s balance sheet, improving its risk profile and potentially lowering its cost of capital.
Renaissance Capital, a subsidiary of the ONEXIM Group since 2012, has a long history of operating in Russian and emerging‑market financial services. The acquisition expands its retail and corporate banking presence and positions it to capture the market share left by Western banks exiting the country.
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