Deutsche Bank among final Citibank bidders: sources

By Philipp Halstrick and Patricia Nann

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Germany's Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE) and France's Credit Mutuel are the sole remaining bidders for Citigroup's (C.N) German retail operations, Citibank, two sources familiar with the situation told Reuters on Thursday.

A decision on the sale is due in the next two weeks, one of the two sources said.

Citibank declined to comment. Its parent, Citigroup, is restructuring its banking operations and selling assets in the wake of the global credit crisis.

Deutsche Bank and Credit Mutuel also declined to comment.

Citibank, which specializes in consumer credit, has about 3.3 million customers and analysts expect it to fetch 4-5 billion euros ($6.3-$7.9 billion).

The sources said acquisitive Spanish lender Santander (SAN.MC) had dropped out of the bidding.

Germany's No. 2 lender, Commerzbank (CBKG.DE), had also left the field to concentrate on a possible merger with Allianz's (ALVG.DE) Dresdner Bank, sources told Reuters earlier.

(Writing by Jonathan Gould; Editing by David Cowell)