Citigroup
Headquarters:
399 Park Ave.
New York, NY 10043
Phone: 212-559-1000
Employees: 352,000
CEO: Vikram Pandit
Stock Symbol: C
Website: http://www.citigroup.com
Citigroup is one of the world's leading financial services companies with 200 million accounts in 100 countries. It operates Citibank, one of the world's leading banks.
Due to financial problems, Citigroup received $20 billion in November from the U.S. Treasury under the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) in exchange for preferred stock. The U.S. government has provided more money to Citigroup in February and has nearly a 36% stake in the company.
The company reported a $27.7 billion loss for 2008.
Citigroup plans to cut at least 50,000 jobs over the next year with half coming through asset sales. Total employment has been reduced by approximately 29,000 since the third quarter 2008 and approximately 52,000 in the full year 2008.
Citi announced in January it will realign into two businesses, Citicorp and Citi Holdings, to optimize the company's global businesses for future profitable growth and opportunities. This structure will enable Citi to focus on driving the performance of its core businesses and, separately, on realizing value from non-core assets.
The strategic restructuring creates:
* Citicorp, which will focus on leveraging the competitive advantages of the company's global universal bank in more than 100 countries, and,
* Citi Holdings, which will be made up of brokerage and retail asset management, local consumer finance and a special asset pool – whose management will focus on tightly managing risks and losses, and maximizing the value of these assets.
Citicorp
Citicorp will be a relationship-focused global bank to businesses and consumers. It will include "core" Citi properties and have a presence in high-growth emerging markets around the world.
Citicorp's Global Institutional Bank will consist of:
* Global Transaction Services: an industry-leading business with a global network in about 140 countries.
* Corporate and Investment Bank: world-class relationship banking offering full range of advisory, underwriting, lending and market-making services; now re-focused with a lower risk profile.
* Citi Private Bank: global banking serving high-net-worth individuals, including about 30 percent of the world's billionaires.
Citicorp's Retail Bank will consist of:
* Branded card businesses globally.
* Regional consumer and commercial banking franchises in the U.S., Asia, Latin America, Central and Eastern Europe, and the Middle East.
Citicorp is expected to have assets of approximately $1.1 trillion and will be approximately 65 percent deposit funded.
Citi Holdings
Citi Holdings will be a group of non-core businesses that include attractive long-term businesses with strong market positions. These businesses and assets will initially include:
* Brokerage and asset management: including the 49 percent stake in Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, as well as Nikko Cordial Securities, Nikko Asset Management and Primerica Financial Services.
* Local consumer finance: including CitiFinancial and CitiMortgage in the U.S., and consumer finance operations in Western Europe, Japan, India, Mexico, Brazil, Thailand and Hong Kong.
* Special asset pool: will manage the assets covered by the loss-sharing agreement with the U.S. government parties in the ring-fenced portfolio; and other non-strategic assets.
History
On June 16, 1812, New York State charters City Bank of New York with $2 million in capital. It opened for business on Sept. 14,1812 to serve a group of merchants. In 1865, City Bank joins the new U.S. national banking system and becomes The National City Bank of New York. By 1894, City Bank was the largest bank in the country. The bank would introduce traveler's checks in 1901 and moved to larger quarters at 55 Wall Street, its headquarters until 1961. The company would move into its current location at 399 Park Ave. in 1961.
In 1955, the bank changed its name to The
First National City Bank of New York. The company would become
Citibank, N.A. (for National Association) in 1976.
In 1998, the company would merge with Travelers Group to become
Citigroup.
Other divisions of Citigroup include: Smith Barney, founded in 1873; Banamex, formed in 1884 as a result of the merger of Banco Nacional Mexicano and Banco Mercantil Mexicano; and Salomon Brothers, which dates back to 1910 and later merged with Smith Barney, a subsidiary of Travelers Group at the time.
In January 2005, Citigroup announced that MetLife would buy the Traveler's Life Insurance business for $11.5 billion.
In 2005, the company completed the sale of its Asset Management business to Legg Mason, in exchange for Legg Mason's broker-dealer business and other consideration.
Benefits
In the U.S., employees receive comprehensive medical, dental and vision-care coverage, flexible spending accounts, life insurance and disability coverage.
It also offers a 401(k) Plan, Employee Stock Purchase Plan, Pension Plan and other select stock and stock option programs.
Updated February 28, 2009