Citigroup disposes of German bank

Citigroup estimates that the sale of its German operations will generate $4bn

Troubled banking giant Citigroup has sold its German consumer banking business to French bank Credit Mutuel.

The 4.9 billion euro ($7.7bn: £3.9bn) cash deal is part of Citi's efforts to return to profit after losing more than $40bn on sub-prime related investments.

It wants to sell $400bn worth of assets over the next three years as well as cut 16,000 jobs worldwide.

In May it announced plans to close two UK mortgage businesses which could lead to the loss of 600 jobs.

These were mortgage supplier Future Mortgages and CitiFinancial, a UK personal loans business.

"This is another strategic step in our effort to reorganize Citi, strengthen our balance sheet, and put us squarely on the path to future growth driven by our core businesses," said Citi chief executive Vikram Pandit.

Citigroup will continue to provide services for business customers in Germany as well as investment banking and financial research.