The purchase includes more than 3m Egg customers and products and services including online payment, saving accounts, mortgages, insurance and investments.
The financial industry had reported speculation about Egg underperforming in the sector. It has been estimated that it made a loss of £145m in 2006. Prudential blamed bad debts and a cutback in customer spending and borrowing.
George Awad, chief executive of Citigroup Global Consumer Group, Europe, Middle East and Africa, said: "We like Egg's brand; we like Egg's platform; we like Egg's customer engagement model; and we like Egg's customer set. This is a terrific acquisition for Citigroup, because it provides us meaningful scale in consumer financial services in the UK, a key strategic market, and enables us to enhance the value proposition for customers."
This deal marks a U-turn for Prudential, after Mark Tucker, its chief executive, decided to buy out the 22% of Egg it did not own and bring the whole brand in to the company. However, debts at Egg continued and in the latter half of 2006, Prudential was forced to admit defeat. The insurer has said it will use the income from the sale to reduce its net debt.
Prudential was in the process of looking for agencies to handle its integrated Prudential and Egg campaigns. Mother has held the Egg account for the last six years but parted company with it earlier this month. The Prudential incumbents, WCRS and Tequila\London, are involved in the pitch, as is Claydon Heeley, the incumbent on Egg's direct account. Media was consolidated into MediaCom in August 2006.
The total value of the combined account was to be worth £27m. The sale of Egg now raises questions about the continuation of the pitch for the integrated creative account.
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