Citigroup sells controlling stake in Bellsystem24

Private equity firm Bain Capital Partners are buying a controlling stake in Japan’s leading call center operator, Bellsystem24, from Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) according to Citigroup in a deal that values the operation at $1.1 billion.

The terms of the deal, Citi’s private investment unit, Citigroup Capital Partners Japan, will receive $1 billion in cash for its 93.5 percent stake in the call center operator. In October the New York based Citigroup completed the sale of its Japanese brokerage to Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. in a $8.7 billion deal.

The U.S. government now owns a 34 percent stake in the bank as Citigroup received $45 billion in loans from them. It has also received guarantees to protect against losses on more than $300 billion in risky assets. Citigroup is selling assets it acquired over the years as it became one of the world’s largest players in banking, insurance and financial services, as part of a recovery.

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