TOKYO: Citigroup Inc said it has agreed to sell its stake in Japanese telemarketer Bellsystem24 to US private equity firm Bain Capital for 93.5 billion yen ($1 billion).

Bain has been widely expected to buy Bellsystem24 after securing exclusive negotiation rights earlier this month.

Sources had told Reuters last week that Bain was close to finalizing a roughly 100 billion yen deal for the company, marking the largest buyout by a foreign private equity firm in Japan in nearly two years.