ING has confirmed that it has reached an agreement to transfer its local custody services business in seven countries in Central and Eastern Europe to Citi, one of the world's largest providers of custody services, subject to regulatory approval.

The transfer of local custody services in Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Russia, Slovakia and Ukraine, is in line with ING’s strategic review of ING Commercial Banking's business portfolio presented in November 2012, the firm said.

The transaction, which is expected to be completed later this year, will not impact ING's retail banking operations or ING's insurance and investment management businesses in the Central and Eastern European region. It will, however, concern a workforce of around 130 FTEs across the region and approximately €110 billion (around $143 billion) in assets held under custody as of the first quarter of this year.

Citi was responsible for approximately $415 billion in liability balances and $13.5 trillion in assets under custody at end-March 2013.