Mumbai: Reliance Retail Ltd, a subsidiary of Reliance Industries Ltd, is entering a joint venture with Citigroup for a non-banking finance company in India, the Economic Times paper said on Monday.
The firm, in which Citigroup is likely to own a majority stake, will largely deal in loans and credit cards for Reliance Retail customers, the paper said, citing a source close to the development.
The investment was likely to be in the region of about Rs 450 crore ($115 million), it said.
The head of Reliance's consumer finance division declined to comment, the paper said.
A spokesman for Citigroup said he had no comment to offer.
Reliance Retail is spending about $5.5 billion in setting up a countrywide network of multiple formats.
But since it launched last year, it has only set up about 300 of a planned 1,000 stores as protests and attacks by small shop owners and traders have slowed its progress.
Chairman Mukesh Ambani told shareholders last week the company would build "partnerships with global leaders" in each of the areas it operated in, including financial services.
Its loyalty programme, Reliance One, already has more than 1.5 million customers, Ambani had said.
The fragmented retail industry, estimated to be worth about $350 billion, is forecast to nearly double by 2015.
Pantaloon Retail India Ltd, the top listed retailer, recently launched a consumer finance division.
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