Sallie Mae student loan provider said Monday it successfully closed a deal to acquire $27 billion of securitized federal student loans and related assets from The Student Loan Corporation, a subsidiary of Citigroup.

The sales reduce non-core assets in Citi Holdings by approximately $31 billion and combined with other divestitures in the quarter are expected to bring Citi Holdings assets to less than 20 percent of the firm's total balance sheet by the end of the fourth quarter 2010, Citi said in a statement.

The transaction, originally announced in September will add 1.3 million customers to Sallie Mae's customer base.

"We are pleased to welcome our new customers and to bring them our first-class customer care, college saving, and online banking offerings to help them achieve their education and financial goals," said Albert L. Lord, vice chairman and CEO of Sallie Mae.

Citigroup shares rose 1.3 percent in premarket trade.