Top headlines: Axis acquires Citi India's retail assets; Centre hikes DA

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Axis Bank acquires Citi's consumer business in India for $1.6 bn

Citigroup has agreed to sell its consumer banking business in India to Axis Bank for $1.6 billion, the latest step in Chief Executive Officer Jane Fraser's push to simplify the bank.

The sale follows a months-long auction process and includes a credit-card business with around 2.6 million cardholders, the sixth-largest in the country.

It is part of Citi CEO Jane Fraser's plan to revamp the bank by exiting retail banking operations in 13 countries and focusing on its more lucrative institutional and wealth management businesses.

The sale excludes Citi's institutional client businesses in