Citi trims stake in Akbank, to book $1.1B charge

Citi expects as a result of the move to book a $1.1 billion pretax charge in the current quarter.

The financial giant holds a 20 percent equity interest in Akbank and plans to lower that to less than 10 percent.

Citi said in a filing with regulators Friday that it is making the move in light of improvements in the global equity capital markets and as part of its ongoing capital planning efforts.

It bought its stake in Akbank in January of 2007 for $3.1 billion. At the time, the purchase was described by Citi executives as part of the bank's diversification into international markets.