The departures of Tokyo-based loan executives from Citigroup Inc. and General Electric Capital Corp. highlight the retreat of foreign banks from the nation's lending market.

Nobuhiko Ito, head of acquisition finance and syndicated lending at Citigroup, and Masahiko Horiba, an executive director in GE Capital's structured finance unit, both said last month they are stepping down.

Outstanding loans by foreign banks dropped to a record low ¥1.846 trillion in November as borrowing costs slump, Bank of Japan data going back to 1995 show.