Union Bank of the Philippines is leading the race to acquire Citigroup’s retail banking operations in the country.
Through a regulatory filing, the lender has confirmed that it is in talks with the American banking giant.
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In the filing, Union Bank senior vice president Joselito Banaag noted that the discussions are at an early stage.
Banaag said that “any transaction in relation to the foregoing would be subject to, among other things, the completion of satisfactory due diligence, the negotiation and execution of definitive transaction documents, satisfaction of the conditions contained therein and the approval by the regulators of the transaction.”
“Accordingly, there can be no assurances that the transaction will be completed at this stage,” Banaag added.
The news was first reported by Bloomberg. The deal could be valued at nearly $1bn, the publication has reported citing sources.
Earlier, it was reported that BDO Unibank, Metropolitan Bank & Trust and Bank of the Philippine Islands also had eyes on Citigroup’s Philippines unit.
Citigroup is exiting 13 retail banking markets to focus on investment banking. It will focus only on four retail markets outside the US, which include Singapore, Hong Kong, the UAE, and London.
Most recently, National Australia Bank received regulatory clearance to take over Citigroup’s consumer operations in the country for $880m.
Last month, Citigroup decided to close its retail banking business in South Korea after failing to divest it.
