Citigroup sold its 1.5 per cent stake in housing finance major HDFC Ltd and made a pre-tax profit of $160 million from the deal.
This will bring down Citi's stake in HDFC from 11.4 per cent to 9.9 per cent, said a company release. This is part of Citi's mitigation efforts ahead of the adoption of Basel III capital rules and it has no plans to sell more shares of HDFC, the release said.
Capital planning
“We have been an investor in HDFC since 2005 and continue to have a strong relationship with its senior management team. This transaction was motivated by our capital planning as we prepare for Basel III, rather than strategic considerations, ” said Mr John Gerspach, Citigroup's Chief Financial Officer. The HDFC stake closed down 1.42 per cent at Rs 648.15 on the BSE.