UK lender Barclays Bank has agreed
to acquire the Portuguese credit card business of troubled US bank
Citigroup. Barclays will acquire approximately 400,000 credit card
accounts, gross assets of approximately €644 million ($949 million)
of which substantially all relate to receivables, as well as
Citibank’s employees.
Barclays has said it intends to integrate the
business into its existing Barclays Portugal business, which is
part of the Barclays Global Retail and Commercial Banking Western
Europe division.
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Barclays has also said it intends to rebrand
existing Citi cards with its global Barclaycard brand over a period
of time. Completion is subject to competition clearance and is
expected to occur before the end of 2009.
Frits Seegers, CEO of Barclays Global Retail
and Commercial Banking, said in a statement: “Barclays’ business in
Portugal has grown rapidly over the past three years, adding more
than 130 branches across the country.
“With this acquisition, we will deliver a real
step change in our business, significantly increasing Barclays
Portugal’s customer base and providing extensive cross-sell
opportunities.”
Last month, Barclays agreed a long-term life
insurance joint venture in Spain, Portugal and Italy with France’s
CNP Assurance.
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By GlobalDataIn the past two years, Barclays’ Western
European retail branch network has expanded by more than 50
percent, from 798 sales outlets in 2007 to more than 1,200 with
Spain (595 sales points), Italy (224), and Portugal, its three
largest markets.
