Citibank
Encyclopedia
Citibank, a major international bank, is the consumer banking arm of financial services
giant Citigroup
. Citibank was founded in 1812 as the City Bank of New York, later First National City Bank of New York. , Citigroup is the third largest bank holding company in the United States
by total assets, after Bank of America
and JP Morgan Chase.
Citibank has retail banking operations in more than 100 countries and territories around the world. More than half of its 1,400 offices are in the United States, mostly in New York City
, Chicago
, Los Angeles
, the San Francisco Bay Area
, Washington, D.C.
and Miami. More recently, Citibank has expanded its operations in the Boston
, Philadelphia, Houston, and Dallas metropolitan areas.
In addition to the standard banking transactions, Citibank offers insurance, credit cards and investment products. Their online services division is among the most successful in the field, claiming about 15 million users.
As a result of the global financial crisis of 2008–2009 and huge losses in the value of its subprime mortgage assets, Citibank was rescued by the U.S. government under plans agreed for Citigroup. On November 23, 2008, in addition to initial aid of $25 billion, a further $25 billion was invested in the corporation together with guarantees for risky assets amounting to $306 billion.
Since this time, Citibank has repaid its government loans in full.
, a protégé of John Jacob Astor
and one of the giants of the business world in the 19th century. During Taylor's ascendancy, the bank functioned largely as a treasury and finance center for Taylor's own extensive business empire. The first president of City Bank was Col. Samuel Osgood
, born in North Andover, Massachusetts.
In 1863, the bank joined the U.S.'s new national banking system and became The National City Bank
of New York. By 1868, it was considered one of the largest banks in the United States, and in 1897, it became the first major U.S. bank to establish a foreign department.
National City became the first U.S. national bank to open an overseas banking office when its branch in Buenos Aires
, Argentina, was opened in 1914. Many of Citi's present international offices are older; offices in London, Shanghai, Calcutta, and elsewhere were opened in 1901 and 1902 by the International Banking Corporation (IBC), a company chartered to conduct banking business outside the U.S., at that time an activity forbidden to U.S. national banks. In 1918, IBC became a wholly owned subsidiary and was subsequently merged into the bank. By 1919, the bank had become the first U.S. bank to have $1 billion in assets.
Charles E. Mitchell
was elected president in 1921 and in 1929 was made chairman, a position he held until 1933. Under Mitchell the bank expanded rapidly and by 1930 had 100 branches in 23 countries outside the United States. The policies pursued by the bank under Mitchell's leadership are seen by historical economists as one of the prime causes of the stock market crash of 1929, which led ultimately to the Great Depression
. In 1933 a Senate committee, the Pecora Commission
, investigated Mitchell for his part in tens of millions dollars in losses, excessive pay, and tax avoidance. Senator Carter Glass
said of him: "Mitchell more than any 50 men is responsible for this stock crash
."
On December 24, 1927, its headquarters in Buenos Aires
, Argentina, were blown up by the Italian anarchist Severino Di Giovanni
, in the frame of the international campaign supporting Sacco and Vanzetti
.
In 1952, James Stillman Rockefeller
was elected president and then chairman in 1959, serving until 1967. Stillman was a direct descendant of the Rockefeller family
through the William Rockefeller
(the brother of John D.
) branch. In 1960, his second cousin, David Rockefeller
, became president of Chase Manhattan Bank
, National City's long-time New York rival for dominance in the banking industry in America.
The company organically entered the leasing and credit card sectors, and its introduction of US dollar denominated certificates of deposit in London marked the first new negotiable instrument
in the market since 1888. Later to become part of MasterCard
, the bank introduced its First National City Charge Service credit card – popularly known as the "Everything Card" – in 1967.
In 1976, under the leadership of CEO Walter B. Wriston, First National City Bank (and its holding company
First National City Corporation) was renamed Citibank, N.A. (and Citicorp, respectively). By that time, the bank had created its own "one-bank holding company" and had become a wholly owned subsidiary of that company, Citicorp (all shareholders of the bank had become shareholders of the new corporation, which became the bank's sole owner).
The name change also helped to avoid confusion in Ohio
with Cleveland-based National City Bank
, though the two would never have any significant overlapping areas except for Citi credit cards being issued in the latter National City territory. (In addition, at the time of the name change to Citicorp, National City of Ohio was mostly a Cleveland-area bank and had not gone on its acquisition spree that it would later go on in the 1990s and 2000s.) Any possible name confusion had Citi not changed its name from National City eventually became completely moot when PNC Financial Services
acquired the National City of Ohio in 2008 as a result of the subprime mortgage crisis
.
. Branches also had terminals
with simple one-line displays that allowed customers to get basic account information without a bank teller
. When automatic teller machines were later introduced, customers could use their existing Citicard.
. However after three years, the bank (under pressure from the U.S. government) was forced to sell this division. By 1968, the company created its own credit card. The card, known as "The Everything Card
", was promoted as a kind of East Coast version of the BankAmericard. By 1969, First National City Bank decided that the Everything Card was too costly to promote as an independent brand and joined Master Charge (now MasterCard
). Citibank unsuccessfully tried again in 1977–1987 to create a separate credit card brand, the Choice Card
.
John S. Reed
was selected CEO in 1984, and Citi became a founding member of the CHAPS
clearing house
in London. Under his leadership, the next 14 years would see Citibank become the largest bank in the United States, the largest issuer of credit cards and charge cards in the world, and expand its global reach to over 90 countries.
As the bank's expansion continued, the Narre Warren-Caroline Springs credit card company was purchased in 1981. In 1981, Citibank chartered a South Dakota
subsidiary to take advantage of new laws that raised the state's maximum permissible interest rate
on loans to 25 percent (then the highest in the nation). In many other states, usury laws prevented banks from charging interest that aligned with the extremely high costs of lending money in the late 1970s and early 1980s, making consumer lending unprofitable. Currently, there is no maximum interest rate or usury restriction under South Dakota law when a written agreement is formed.
In April 2006, Citibank struck a deal with 7-Eleven
to put its automated teller machine
(ATMs) in more than 5,500 convenience stores in the United States. In the same month, it also announced it would sell all of its Buffalo and Rochester, New York, branches and accounts to M&T Bank
.
in 2002 with Citicorp's purchase of Golden State Bancorp which had earlier merged with First Nationwide Mortgage Corp.
In 2001, Citibank settled a $45 million class action lawsuit for improperly assessing late fees. Following this Citibank lobbied the United States Congress
to pass legislation that would limit class action lawsuits to $5 million unless they were initiated on a federal level. Some consumer advocate websites report that Citibank is still improperly assessing late fees.
In August 2004, Citibank entered the Texas market with the purchase of First American Bank of Bryan
, Texas. The deal established Citi's retail banking
presence in Texas, giving Citibank over 100 branches, $3.5 billion in assets and approximately 120,000 new customers in the state. First American Bank was renamed Citibank Texas after the take-over was completed on March 31, 2005.
In 2008, Citibank was crowned Deal of the Year – Securitisation Deal of the Year at the 2008 ALB Japan Law Awards.
. The stadium, Citi Field, opened in 2009.
announced that it too had been losing billions from the subprime mortgage crisis in the United States.
On April 11, 2007, the parent Citi announced staff cuts and relocations.
On November 4, 2007, Charles Prince
quit as the chairman and chief executive of Citigroup, following crisis meetings with the board in New York in the wake of billions of dollars in losses related to subprime lending
.
Former United States Secretary of the Treasury Robert Rubin
has been asked to replace ex-CEO Charles Prince to manage the losses Citi has amassed over the years of being over-exposed to subprime lending during the 2002–2007 surge in the real estate industry.
In August 2008, after a three-year investigation by California's Attorney General
Citibank was ordered to repay the $14 million (close to $18 million including interest and penalties) that was removed from 53,000 customers accounts over an 11-year period from 1992 to 2003. The money was taken under a computerized "account sweeping program" where any positive balances from over-payments or double payments were removed without notice to the customers.
On November 23, 2008, Citigroup was forced to seek federal financing to avoid a collapse similar to those suffered by its competitors Bear Stearns and AIG. The U.S. government provided $25 billion and guarantees to risky assets to Citigroup in exchange for stock. This was one of a series of companies receiving financial aid from the government that began with Bear Stearns and peaked with the collapse of Lehman, AIG, and the GSE's
, and the start of the TARP program.
On January 16, 2009, Citigroup announced that it was splitting into two businesses. Citicorp will continue with the traditional banking business while Citi Holdings Inc. operates non-core businesses such as brokerage, asset management, and local consumer finance as well as managing a set of higher-risk assets. The split was presented as allowing Citibank to concentrate on its core banking business.
On October 1, 2006, a massive re-organization designed to streamline the various Citibank banking charters occurred. Citibank, N.A. absorbed the following divisions, with its headquarters for FDIC purposes being its Paradise Road Las Vegas, Nevada
branch.
The following divisions were consolidated into Citibank (South Dakota), N.A., with its headquarters for FDIC purposes being in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
On March 29, 2011, Citibank, N.A. and Citibank (South Dakota), N.A. announced their intentions to further consolidate their banking charters by announcing a merger which was finalized on July 1, 2011. The surviving FDIC charter was that of Citibank, N.A. which, as part of the merger, moved its headquarters to that of Citibank (South Dakota), N.A.'s in Sioux Falls.
In 2005, Macy's, Inc. under its former corporate name Federated Department Stores
, sold its consumer credit portfolio to Citigroup
, reissuing its cards under the Federated-Citigroup Alliance name Department Stores National Bank (DSNB) and allowing Federated to continue servicing the credit accounts from its Financial, Administrative and Credit Services Group (FACS Group Inc.). The cards involved are Macy's
and Bloomingdale's
.
Citibank's private-label credit card division, Citi Commerce Solutions, issues store-issued credit card for such companies as: Sears, ConocoPhillips
, ExxonMobil
, The Home Depot
, Staples, Shell Oil, and others.
The German branch, the Citibank Privatkunden AG & Co. KGaA was sold in July 2008 to the French Crédit Mutuel Group. On February 22, 2010 it was renamed to Targobank
.
Ownership Of Citibank:
Citibank Australia
Citibank Belgium Citibank Bolivia Citibank Bangladesh Citibank Brazil Citibank (China) Citibank (Colombia) Citibank (Egypt) Citibank (Greece) Citibank (Hong Kong)
Citibank Hungary Citibank India
Citibank Indonesia
Citibank ItalyCitibank Japan Citibank Malaysia Citibank Pakistan Citibank Peru Citibank Philippines
Citi Handlowy Citibank Portugal Citibank Romania Citibank Russia Samba (Citibank for Saudi Arabia) Citibank International Personal Bank Singapore/Citibank IPB Singapore
Citibank Singapore
Citibusiness Singapore
Citibank Slovakia Citibank Korea
Citibank Spain Citibank Taiwan Citibank Thailand
Citibank Trinidad and Tobago Citibank Tunisia Citibank Ukraine Citibank Venezuela Citibank Vietnam
concerning the death of a family member while meeting with debt collectors in Citibank, Jakarta
Office. The lawsuit claimed for Rp.3 trillion ($345 million) for damages. Citibank was in violation of a US regulation, the Fair Debt Collecting Practised Act, as well as the Indonesian 2008 Banking Law, which both bans the use of violence in debt collection practices.
Citibank became a major sponsor of the Sydney Swans
in 2005, who play in the AFL
, Australia's most popular football code.
Financial services
Financial services refer to services provided by the finance industry. The finance industry encompasses a broad range of organizations that deal with the management of money. Among these organizations are credit unions, banks, credit card companies, insurance companies, consumer finance companies,...
giant Citigroup
Citigroup
Citigroup Inc. or Citi is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States. Citigroup was formed from one of the world's largest mergers in history by combining the banking giant Citicorp and financial conglomerate...
. Citibank was founded in 1812 as the City Bank of New York, later First National City Bank of New York. , Citigroup is the third largest bank holding company in the United States
Banking in the United States
Banking in the United States is regulated by both the federal and state governments.The U.S. banking sector's short-term liabilities as of October 11, 2008 are 15% of the gross domestic product of the United States or 43% of its national debt, and the average bank leverage ratio is 12 to...
by total assets, after Bank of America
Bank of America
Bank of America Corporation, an American multinational banking and financial services corporation, is the second largest bank holding company in the United States by assets, and the fourth largest bank in the U.S. by market capitalization. The bank is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina...
and JP Morgan Chase.
Citibank has retail banking operations in more than 100 countries and territories around the world. More than half of its 1,400 offices are in the United States, mostly in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, the San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
, Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
and Miami. More recently, Citibank has expanded its operations in the Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Philadelphia, Houston, and Dallas metropolitan areas.
In addition to the standard banking transactions, Citibank offers insurance, credit cards and investment products. Their online services division is among the most successful in the field, claiming about 15 million users.
As a result of the global financial crisis of 2008–2009 and huge losses in the value of its subprime mortgage assets, Citibank was rescued by the U.S. government under plans agreed for Citigroup. On November 23, 2008, in addition to initial aid of $25 billion, a further $25 billion was invested in the corporation together with guarantees for risky assets amounting to $306 billion.
Since this time, Citibank has repaid its government loans in full.
History
Early history
Founded in 1812 as the City Bank of New York, ownership and management of the bank was taken over by Moses TaylorMoses Taylor
Moses Taylor was a 19th century New York merchant and banker and one of the wealthiest men of that century. At his death, his estate was reported to be worth $70 million, or about $ billion in today's dollars. He controlled the National City Bank of New York , the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western...
, a protégé of John Jacob Astor
John Jacob Astor
John Jacob Astor , born Johann Jakob Astor, was a German-American business magnate and investor who was the first prominent member of the Astor family and the first multi-millionaire in the United States...
and one of the giants of the business world in the 19th century. During Taylor's ascendancy, the bank functioned largely as a treasury and finance center for Taylor's own extensive business empire. The first president of City Bank was Col. Samuel Osgood
Samuel Osgood
Samuel Osgood was an American merchant and statesman born in North Andover Massachusetts, parent town of the Andovers. His family home still stands at 440 Osgood Street in North Andover...
, born in North Andover, Massachusetts.
In 1863, the bank joined the U.S.'s new national banking system and became The National City Bank
National City Bank Building
55 Wall Street in Manhattan, New York City is a former bank building that today houses luxury apartments.It was originally the Merchants Exchange, a Greek Revival building built between 1836 and 1841. Between 1862 and around 1907, the U.S. Customs Service used the building before moving into the...
of New York. By 1868, it was considered one of the largest banks in the United States, and in 1897, it became the first major U.S. bank to establish a foreign department.
National City became the first U.S. national bank to open an overseas banking office when its branch in Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
, Argentina, was opened in 1914. Many of Citi's present international offices are older; offices in London, Shanghai, Calcutta, and elsewhere were opened in 1901 and 1902 by the International Banking Corporation (IBC), a company chartered to conduct banking business outside the U.S., at that time an activity forbidden to U.S. national banks. In 1918, IBC became a wholly owned subsidiary and was subsequently merged into the bank. By 1919, the bank had become the first U.S. bank to have $1 billion in assets.
Charles E. Mitchell
Charles E. Mitchell
Charles Edwin Mitchell was an American banker whose incautious securities policies facilitated the speculation which led to the Crash of 1929...
was elected president in 1921 and in 1929 was made chairman, a position he held until 1933. Under Mitchell the bank expanded rapidly and by 1930 had 100 branches in 23 countries outside the United States. The policies pursued by the bank under Mitchell's leadership are seen by historical economists as one of the prime causes of the stock market crash of 1929, which led ultimately to the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. In 1933 a Senate committee, the Pecora Commission
Pecora Commission
The Pecora Investigation was an inquiry begun on March 4, 1932 by the United States Senate Committee on Banking and Currency to investigate the causes of the Wall Street Crash of 1929...
, investigated Mitchell for his part in tens of millions dollars in losses, excessive pay, and tax avoidance. Senator Carter Glass
Carter Glass
Carter Glass was a newspaper publisher and politician from Lynchburg, Virginia. He served many years in Congress as a member of the Democratic Party. As House co-sponsor, he played a central role in the development of the 1913 Glass-Owen Act that created the Federal Reserve System. Glass...
said of him: "Mitchell more than any 50 men is responsible for this stock crash
Wall Street Crash of 1929
The Wall Street Crash of 1929 , also known as the Great Crash, and the Stock Market Crash of 1929, was the most devastating stock market crash in the history of the United States, taking into consideration the full extent and duration of its fallout...
."
On December 24, 1927, its headquarters in Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
, Argentina, were blown up by the Italian anarchist Severino Di Giovanni
Severino Di Giovanni
Severino Di Giovanni , was an Italian anarchist who immigrated to Argentina, where he became the best-known anarchist figure in that country for his campaign of violence in support of Sacco and Vanzetti and antifascism.- Italy :Di Giovanni was born on March 17, 1901, in the town of Chieti, in the...
, in the frame of the international campaign supporting Sacco and Vanzetti
Sacco and Vanzetti
Ferdinando Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti were anarchists who were convicted of murdering two men during a 1920 armed robbery in South Braintree, Massachusetts, United States...
.
In 1952, James Stillman Rockefeller
James Stillman Rockefeller
James Stillman Rockefeller was a member of the prominent U.S. Rockefeller family.-Personal life:A paternal grandson of William Rockefeller, his maternal grandfather James Stillman and uncle James Alexander Stillman served as president of the National City Bank of New York, now Citibank...
was elected president and then chairman in 1959, serving until 1967. Stillman was a direct descendant of the Rockefeller family
Rockefeller family
The Rockefeller family , the Cleveland family of John D. Rockefeller and his brother William Rockefeller , is an American industrial, banking, and political family of German origin that made one of the world's largest private fortunes in the oil business during the late 19th and early 20th...
through the William Rockefeller
William Rockefeller
William Avery Rockefeller, Jr. , American financier, was a co-founder with his older brother John D. Rockefeller of the prominent United States Rockefeller family. He was the son of William Avery Rockefeller, Sr. and Eliza Rockefeller.-Youth, education:Rockefeller was born in Richford, New York,...
(the brother of John D.
John D. Rockefeller
John Davison Rockefeller was an American oil industrialist, investor, and philanthropist. He was the founder of the Standard Oil Company, which dominated the oil industry and was the first great U.S. business trust. Rockefeller revolutionized the petroleum industry and defined the structure of...
) branch. In 1960, his second cousin, David Rockefeller
David Rockefeller
David Rockefeller, Sr. is the current patriarch of the Rockefeller family. He is the youngest and only surviving child of John D. Rockefeller, Jr. and Abby Aldrich Rockefeller, and the only surviving grandchild of oil tycoon John D. Rockefeller, founder of Standard Oil. His five siblings were...
, became president of Chase Manhattan Bank
Chase Manhattan Bank
JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., doing business as Chase, is a national bank that constitutes the consumer and commercial banking subsidiary of financial services firm JPMorgan Chase. The bank was known as Chase Manhattan Bank until it merged with J.P. Morgan & Co. in 2000...
, National City's long-time New York rival for dominance in the banking industry in America.
Citibank
Following its merger with the First National Bank in 1955, the bank changed its name to The First National City Bank of New York, then shortened it to First National City Bank in 1962.The company organically entered the leasing and credit card sectors, and its introduction of US dollar denominated certificates of deposit in London marked the first new negotiable instrument
Negotiable instrument
A negotiable instrument is a document guaranteeing the payment of a specific amount of money, either on demand, or at a set time. According to the Section 13 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 in India, a negotiable instrument means a promissory note, bill of exchange or cheque payable either...
in the market since 1888. Later to become part of MasterCard
MasterCard
Mastercard Incorporated or MasterCard Worldwide is an American multinational financial services corporation with its headquarters in the MasterCard International Global Headquarters, Purchase, Harrison, New York, United States...
, the bank introduced its First National City Charge Service credit card – popularly known as the "Everything Card" – in 1967.
In 1976, under the leadership of CEO Walter B. Wriston, First National City Bank (and its holding company
Holding company
A holding company is a company or firm that owns other companies' outstanding stock. It usually refers to a company which does not produce goods or services itself; rather, its purpose is to own shares of other companies. Holding companies allow the reduction of risk for the owners and can allow...
First National City Corporation) was renamed Citibank, N.A. (and Citicorp, respectively). By that time, the bank had created its own "one-bank holding company" and had become a wholly owned subsidiary of that company, Citicorp (all shareholders of the bank had become shareholders of the new corporation, which became the bank's sole owner).
The name change also helped to avoid confusion in Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
with Cleveland-based National City Bank
National City Corp.
National City Corporation was a regional bank holding company based in Cleveland, Ohio, USA, founded in 1845; it was once one of the ten largest banks in America in terms of deposits, mortgages and home equity lines of credit. Subsidiary National City Mortgage is credited for doing the first...
, though the two would never have any significant overlapping areas except for Citi credit cards being issued in the latter National City territory. (In addition, at the time of the name change to Citicorp, National City of Ohio was mostly a Cleveland-area bank and had not gone on its acquisition spree that it would later go on in the 1990s and 2000s.) Any possible name confusion had Citi not changed its name from National City eventually became completely moot when PNC Financial Services
PNC Financial Services
PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. is a U.S.-based financial services corporation, with assets of approximately $264.3 billion...
acquired the National City of Ohio in 2008 as a result of the subprime mortgage crisis
Subprime mortgage crisis
The U.S. subprime mortgage crisis was one of the first indicators of the late-2000s financial crisis, characterized by a rise in subprime mortgage delinquencies and foreclosures, and the resulting decline of securities backed by said mortgages....
.
Automated banking card
Shortly afterward, the bank launched the Citicard, which allowed customers to perform all transactions without a passbookPassbook
A passbook or bankbook is a paper book used to record bank transactions on a deposit account. Depending on the country or the financial institution, it can be of the dimensions of a chequebook or a passport....
. Branches also had terminals
Computer terminal
A computer terminal is an electronic or electromechanical hardware device that is used for entering data into, and displaying data from, a computer or a computing system...
with simple one-line displays that allowed customers to get basic account information without a bank teller
Bank teller
A teller is an employee of a bank who deals directly with most customers. In some places, this employee is known as a cashier. Most teller jobs require cash handling experience and a high school diploma. Most banks provide on the job training....
. When automatic teller machines were later introduced, customers could use their existing Citicard.
Credit card business
In the 1960s the bank entered into the credit card business. In 1965, First National City Bank bought Carte Blanche from Hilton HotelsHilton Hotels
Hilton Hotels & Resorts is an international chain of full-service hotels and resorts founded by Conrad Hilton and now owned by Hilton Worldwide. Hilton hotels are either owned by, managed by, or franchised to independent operators by Hilton Worldwide. Hilton Hotels became the first coast-to-coast...
. However after three years, the bank (under pressure from the U.S. government) was forced to sell this division. By 1968, the company created its own credit card. The card, known as "The Everything Card
The Everything Card
The First National City Charge Service, marketed as The Everything Card, was an early credit card introduced by First National City Bank in the eastern United States in 1967. It was intended as a response to the BankAmericard , issued by BankAmerica.Issued under the initiative of National City...
", was promoted as a kind of East Coast version of the BankAmericard. By 1969, First National City Bank decided that the Everything Card was too costly to promote as an independent brand and joined Master Charge (now MasterCard
MasterCard
Mastercard Incorporated or MasterCard Worldwide is an American multinational financial services corporation with its headquarters in the MasterCard International Global Headquarters, Purchase, Harrison, New York, United States...
). Citibank unsuccessfully tried again in 1977–1987 to create a separate credit card brand, the Choice Card
Choice (credit card)
Choice was a credit card test marketed by Citibank in the United States, announced in 1977 and first issued in 1978. It was one of the first cards to offer a cash-refund program and no annual fee. Choice was intended to create a rival to Visa, MasterCard, and American Express, but proved...
.
John S. Reed
John S. Reed
John Shepard Reed is the former Chairman of the New York Stock Exchange. He previously served as Chairman and CEO of Citicorp, Citibank, and post-merger, Citigroup. He is currently the Chairman of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Office of Corporation. He was born in Chicago, Illinois,...
was selected CEO in 1984, and Citi became a founding member of the CHAPS
CHAPS
The Clearing House Automated Payment System or CHAPS is a British company established in London in 1984, which offers same-day sterling fund transfers...
clearing house
Clearing house (finance)
A clearing house is a financial institution that provides clearing and settlement services for financial and commodities derivatives and securities transactions...
in London. Under his leadership, the next 14 years would see Citibank become the largest bank in the United States, the largest issuer of credit cards and charge cards in the world, and expand its global reach to over 90 countries.
As the bank's expansion continued, the Narre Warren-Caroline Springs credit card company was purchased in 1981. In 1981, Citibank chartered a South Dakota
South Dakota
South Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over...
subsidiary to take advantage of new laws that raised the state's maximum permissible interest rate
Interest rate
An interest rate is the rate at which interest is paid by a borrower for the use of money that they borrow from a lender. For example, a small company borrows capital from a bank to buy new assets for their business, and in return the lender receives interest at a predetermined interest rate for...
on loans to 25 percent (then the highest in the nation). In many other states, usury laws prevented banks from charging interest that aligned with the extremely high costs of lending money in the late 1970s and early 1980s, making consumer lending unprofitable. Currently, there is no maximum interest rate or usury restriction under South Dakota law when a written agreement is formed.
Automatic teller machines
Citibank was one of the first U.S. banks to introduce automatic teller machines in the 1970s, in order to give 24-hour access to accounts. Customers could use their existing Citicard in this machine to withdraw cash and make deposits, and were already accustomed to using a machine with a card to get information that previously required a teller.In April 2006, Citibank struck a deal with 7-Eleven
7-Eleven
7-Eleven is part of an international chain of convenience stores, operating under Seven-Eleven Japan Co. Ltd, which in turn is owned by Seven & I Holdings Co...
to put its automated teller machine
Automated teller machine
An automated teller machine or automatic teller machine, also known as a Cashpoint , cash machine or sometimes a hole in the wall in British English, is a computerised telecommunications device that provides the clients of a financial institution with access to financial transactions in a public...
(ATMs) in more than 5,500 convenience stores in the United States. In the same month, it also announced it would sell all of its Buffalo and Rochester, New York, branches and accounts to M&T Bank
M&T Bank
M&T Bank is an American commercial bank that was founded in 1856 in western New York, and today remains headquartered in Buffalo at One M & T Plaza...
.
Nationwide expansion
Citibank's major presence in California is fairly recent. The bank had only a handful of branches in that state before acquiring the assets of California Federal BankCalifornia Federal Bank
California Federal Bank, often abbreviated to "Cal Fed", was a savings and loan bank in California with the corporate headquarters being located at 5700 Wilshire Boulevard, in Los Angeles. It existed from 1926 until 2002, when its parent company, Golden State Bancorp, was acquired by Citigroup,...
in 2002 with Citicorp's purchase of Golden State Bancorp which had earlier merged with First Nationwide Mortgage Corp.
In 2001, Citibank settled a $45 million class action lawsuit for improperly assessing late fees. Following this Citibank lobbied the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
to pass legislation that would limit class action lawsuits to $5 million unless they were initiated on a federal level. Some consumer advocate websites report that Citibank is still improperly assessing late fees.
In August 2004, Citibank entered the Texas market with the purchase of First American Bank of Bryan
Bryan, Texas
Bryan is a city in Brazos County, Texas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 76,201. It is the county seat of Brazos County and is located in the heart of the Brazos Valley . It shares its border with the city of College Station, which lies to its south...
, Texas. The deal established Citi's retail banking
Retail banking
Retail banking is banking in which banking institutions execute transactions directly with consumers, rather than corporations or other banks. Services offered include: savings and transactional accounts, mortgages, personal loans, debit cards, credit cards, and so forth.-Types of...
presence in Texas, giving Citibank over 100 branches, $3.5 billion in assets and approximately 120,000 new customers in the state. First American Bank was renamed Citibank Texas after the take-over was completed on March 31, 2005.
In 2008, Citibank was crowned Deal of the Year – Securitisation Deal of the Year at the 2008 ALB Japan Law Awards.
Citi Field
It was announced on November 13, 2006, that Citibank would be the corporate sponsor of the new stadium for the New York MetsNew York Mets
The New York Mets are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League...
. The stadium, Citi Field, opened in 2009.
2008–2009 losses and cost cutting measures
Citi reported losing $8–11 billion several days after Merrill LynchMerrill Lynch
Merrill Lynch is the wealth management division of Bank of America. With over 15,000 financial advisors and $2.2 trillion in client assets it is the world's largest brokerage. Formerly known as Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc., prior to 2009 the firm was publicly owned and traded on the New York...
announced that it too had been losing billions from the subprime mortgage crisis in the United States.
On April 11, 2007, the parent Citi announced staff cuts and relocations.
On November 4, 2007, Charles Prince
Charles Prince
Charles O. "Chuck" Prince, III is an American former chief executive officer and chairman of Citigroup. He succeeded Sandy Weill as the CEO of the firm in 2003, and as the Chairman of the Board in 2006...
quit as the chairman and chief executive of Citigroup, following crisis meetings with the board in New York in the wake of billions of dollars in losses related to subprime lending
Subprime lending
In finance, subprime lending means making loans to people who may have difficulty maintaining the repayment schedule...
.
Former United States Secretary of the Treasury Robert Rubin
Robert Rubin
Robert Edward Rubin served as the 70th United States Secretary of the Treasury during both the first and second Clinton administrations. Before his government service, he spent 26 years at Goldman Sachs eventually serving as a member of the Board, and Co-Chairman from 1990-1992...
has been asked to replace ex-CEO Charles Prince to manage the losses Citi has amassed over the years of being over-exposed to subprime lending during the 2002–2007 surge in the real estate industry.
In August 2008, after a three-year investigation by California's Attorney General
California Attorney General
The California Attorney General is the State Attorney General of California. The officer's duty is to ensure that "the laws of the state are uniformly and adequately enforced" The Attorney General carries out the responsibilities of the office through the California Department of Justice.The...
Citibank was ordered to repay the $14 million (close to $18 million including interest and penalties) that was removed from 53,000 customers accounts over an 11-year period from 1992 to 2003. The money was taken under a computerized "account sweeping program" where any positive balances from over-payments or double payments were removed without notice to the customers.
On November 23, 2008, Citigroup was forced to seek federal financing to avoid a collapse similar to those suffered by its competitors Bear Stearns and AIG. The U.S. government provided $25 billion and guarantees to risky assets to Citigroup in exchange for stock. This was one of a series of companies receiving financial aid from the government that began with Bear Stearns and peaked with the collapse of Lehman, AIG, and the GSE's
Government-sponsored enterprise
A government-sponsored enterprise is a financial services corporation created by the United States Congress. Their function is to enhance the flow of credit to targeted sectors of the economy and to make those segments of the capital market more efficient and transparent...
, and the start of the TARP program.
On January 16, 2009, Citigroup announced that it was splitting into two businesses. Citicorp will continue with the traditional banking business while Citi Holdings Inc. operates non-core businesses such as brokerage, asset management, and local consumer finance as well as managing a set of higher-risk assets. The split was presented as allowing Citibank to concentrate on its core banking business.
Historical data
CitiBank was the third-largest bank at the end of 2008 as an individual bank.Subsidiaries
According to the Citigroup website, until October 2006, Citibank ran the following subsidiaries:- Citibank, N.A.(National Association) – The "original" Citibank, primarily doing business in New York State and the tri-state New York metropolitan areaNew York metropolitan areaThe New York metropolitan area, also known as Greater New York, or the Tri-State area, is the region that composes of New York City and the surrounding region...
. Also the parent company of the other subsidiaries. - Citibank CanadaCitibank CanadaCitibank Canada is a unit of Citigroup of New York City. The Canadian unit has been operating since 1954, with Canadian headquarters in Toronto...
– banking service was pulled out on July 2010, leaving only with credit card service. - Citibank Texas, N.A. – The former First American bank.
- Citibank (West), F.S.B. – The former Citicorp Savings (a savings and loan operating in California), as well as the former California Federal Bank and Golden State Bank.
- Citibank, F.S.B. – The primary Citibank subsidiary serving all other states, based in Chicago.
- Citibank Banamex USA – Formally California Commerce Bank, Banamex's U.S. banking division.
- Citibank (South Dakota), N.A. – A credit card and lending-only bank based in Sioux Falls, South DakotaSioux Falls, South DakotaSioux Falls is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Dakota. Sioux Falls is the county seat of Minnehaha County, and also extends into Lincoln County to the south...
, including the former Associates National Bank. - Universal Financial Corp. – A credit card bank, purchased in 1997, that manages the AT&T Universal Card.
On October 1, 2006, a massive re-organization designed to streamline the various Citibank banking charters occurred. Citibank, N.A. absorbed the following divisions, with its headquarters for FDIC purposes being its Paradise Road Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
branch.
- Citibank, FSB
- Citibank (West), FSB
- Citibank, Texas, N.A.
- Citibank Delaware
- Citibank Banamex USA
- Citicorp Trust, N.A. (California)
The following divisions were consolidated into Citibank (South Dakota), N.A., with its headquarters for FDIC purposes being in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
- Citibank, Nevada, N.A.
- Citibank USA, N.A.
- Universal Financial Corp.
- Citibank South Dakota, FSB
On March 29, 2011, Citibank, N.A. and Citibank (South Dakota), N.A. announced their intentions to further consolidate their banking charters by announcing a merger which was finalized on July 1, 2011. The surviving FDIC charter was that of Citibank, N.A. which, as part of the merger, moved its headquarters to that of Citibank (South Dakota), N.A.'s in Sioux Falls.
In 2005, Macy's, Inc. under its former corporate name Federated Department Stores
Federated Department Stores
Macy's, Inc. is a department store holding company and owner of Macy's and Bloomingdale's department stores. Macy's Inc.'s stores specialize mostly in retail clothing, jewelery, watches, dinnerware, and furniture....
, sold its consumer credit portfolio to Citigroup
Citigroup
Citigroup Inc. or Citi is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States. Citigroup was formed from one of the world's largest mergers in history by combining the banking giant Citicorp and financial conglomerate...
, reissuing its cards under the Federated-Citigroup Alliance name Department Stores National Bank (DSNB) and allowing Federated to continue servicing the credit accounts from its Financial, Administrative and Credit Services Group (FACS Group Inc.). The cards involved are Macy's
Macy's
Macy's is a U.S. chain of mid-to-high range department stores. In addition to its flagship Herald Square location in New York City, the company operates over 800 stores in the United States...
and Bloomingdale's
Bloomingdale's
Bloomingdale's is an American department store owned by Macy's, Inc. .Bloomingdale's started in 1861 when brothers Joseph and Lyman G. Bloomingdale started selling hoop-skirts in their Ladies Notions' Shop on Manhattan's Lower East Side...
.
Citibank's private-label credit card division, Citi Commerce Solutions, issues store-issued credit card for such companies as: Sears, ConocoPhillips
ConocoPhillips
ConocoPhillips Company is an American multinational energy corporation with its headquarters located in the Energy Corridor district of Houston, Texas in the United States...
, ExxonMobil
ExxonMobil
Exxon Mobil Corporation or ExxonMobil, is an American multinational oil and gas corporation. It is a direct descendant of John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil company, and was formed on November 30, 1999, by the merger of Exxon and Mobil. Its headquarters are in Irving, Texas...
, The Home Depot
The Home Depot
The Home Depot is an American retailer of home improvement and construction products and services.The Home Depot operates 2,248 big-box format stores across the United States , Canada , Mexico and China, with a 12-store chain...
, Staples, Shell Oil, and others.
The German branch, the Citibank Privatkunden AG & Co. KGaA was sold in July 2008 to the French Crédit Mutuel Group. On February 22, 2010 it was renamed to Targobank
Targobank
The German retail banking arm of Citibank, which was sold to Crédit Mutuel in December 2008, was formally rebranded "Targobank", a made up name with multijurisdictional possibilities on 22 February 2010....
.
Ownership Of Citibank:
- 0.0 % – United States Government
- 11.1 % – Government of Singapore Investment CorporationGovernment of Singapore Investment CorporationThe Government of Singapore Investment Corporation Private Limited is a sovereign wealth fund established by the Government of Singapore in 1981 to manage Singapore's foreign reserves...
(GIC) - 6.0 % – Kuwait Investment AuthorityKuwait Investment AuthorityThe Kuwait Investment Authority is Kuwait's sovereign wealth fund , managing body, specializing in local and foreign investment...
- 4.9 % – Abu Dhabi Investment AuthorityAbu Dhabi Investment AuthorityThe Abu Dhabi Investment Authority is a sovereign wealth fund owned by Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates founded for the purpose of investing funds on behalf of the Government of Abu Dhabi....
(ADIA) - 4.3 % – Kingdom Holding CompanyKingdom Holding CompanyKingdom Holding Company is a public holding company headquartered in Kingdom Centre in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and is the largest company in Saudi Arabia. It is controlled by Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz, and is headquartered in the city of Riyadh...
/Saudi ArabiaSaudi ArabiaThe Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
Joint ventures
- Mobile Money Ventures, a joint venture with SK TelecomSK TelecomSK Telecom Co., Ltd. or Sunkyoung Telecom is a South Korean wireless telecommunications operator, controlled by the SK Group, one of the country's largest chaebol. As a part of SK Group, SK stands for Sun Kyung.SK Telecom is a provider of mobile service in Korea, with 50.5% of the market share as...
International subsidiaries
Citibank Algeria Citibank ArgentinaCitibank Argentina
Citibank Argentina is a commercial bank and financial services company operating as a wholly owned subsidiary of New York-based Citigroup. Its banking operations are the tenth largest in Argentina.-Overview:...
Citibank Australia
Citibank Australia
Citibank Australia was opened in 1985 and was one of the first foreign banks to be granted a banking license in Australia, besides being one of the largest international banks in the country. With its head office in Sydney, Citibank currently has major centers in Melbourne, Perth, Booragoon and...
Citibank Belgium Citibank Bolivia Citibank Bangladesh Citibank Brazil Citibank (China) Citibank (Colombia) Citibank (Egypt) Citibank (Greece) Citibank (Hong Kong)
Citibank (Hong Kong)
-History:Citibank began operations in Hong Kong in 1902, thus becoming the first foreign bank to offer its services there. Citibank Limited is a licensed bank incorporated in Hong Kong. It is traded with the Chinese trading name 花旗銀行...
Citibank Hungary Citibank India
Citibank India
-History:Established 109 years ago in Kolkata, Citibank has a long history in India. Currently it is the largest foreign direct investor in financial services in India with a total capital commitment of approximately US$ 4 Billion in its onshore banking and financial services business and its...
Citibank Indonesia
Citibank Indonesia
-History:Citibank has had a presence in Indonesia in one form or another since 1918 when its precursor, The International Banking Corporation, set up branches in Batavia and Surabaya...
Citibank ItalyCitibank Japan Citibank Malaysia Citibank Pakistan Citibank Peru Citibank Philippines
Citibank Philippines
Citibank Philippines is the Philippines chapter of Citibank. Since its establishment in 1902, Citibank Philippines has played a central role in shaping the financial infrastructure and development of the country.-History:...
Citi Handlowy Citibank Portugal Citibank Romania Citibank Russia Samba (Citibank for Saudi Arabia) Citibank International Personal Bank Singapore/Citibank IPB Singapore
Citibank Singapore IPB
Citibank International Personal Bank Singapore, or Citibank IPB Singapore, is a division of Citibank Singapore Limited that caters to people who want to invest in other countries through offshore banking. It is a pioneer in the offshore banking business in Singapore with more than 20 years of...
Citibank Singapore
Citibank Singapore
Citibank Singapore Limited is a division of Citibank N. A. of the United States and incorporated in Singapore on 28 June 2004. It has Qualifying Full Bank status which was awarded to its parent on 20 October 1999, and the QFB status was transferred on the same day of its incorporation...
Citibusiness Singapore
Citibusiness Singapore
CitiBusiness Singapore is a unit of Citibank Singapore Ltd that serves small and medium enterprises . It was launched in Singapore in 2005.-Company profile:...
Citibank Slovakia Citibank Korea
Citibank Korea
Citibank Korea is a South Korean subsidiary of Citigroup. It was founded as KorAm Bank in 1983, and Citibank acquired and merged it with its Seoul branch in 2003...
Citibank Spain Citibank Taiwan Citibank Thailand
Citibank Thailand
-History:Citi started operations in Thailand as early as 1967, when it began with a 50% equity stake in the Bangkok First Investment Trust. In 1989 the First National City Finance was initiated. Later in 1984, Citibank Thailand obtained a full banking licence when it acquired the Mercantile Bank...
Citibank Trinidad and Tobago Citibank Tunisia Citibank Ukraine Citibank Venezuela Citibank Vietnam
Citibank Vietnam
Citibank was the first US financial institution to receive a branch license and the first US bank to open a full branch in Hanoi in 1994, followed by another in Ho Chi Minh City in 1998....
Contingency
The family's lawyer said the suit was filed against Citibank headquarters in New York and the bank's subsididary Citibank IndonesiaCitibank Indonesia
-History:Citibank has had a presence in Indonesia in one form or another since 1918 when its precursor, The International Banking Corporation, set up branches in Batavia and Surabaya...
concerning the death of a family member while meeting with debt collectors in Citibank, Jakarta
Jakarta
Jakarta is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Officially known as the Special Capital Territory of Jakarta, it is located on the northwest coast of Java, has an area of , and a population of 9,580,000. Jakarta is the country's economic, cultural and political centre...
Office. The lawsuit claimed for Rp.3 trillion ($345 million) for damages. Citibank was in violation of a US regulation, the Fair Debt Collecting Practised Act, as well as the Indonesian 2008 Banking Law, which both bans the use of violence in debt collection practices.
Sponsorship
Citibank sponsors the Greek football club Olympiacos F.C. as well as Citi Field in New York.Citibank became a major sponsor of the Sydney Swans
Sydney Swans
The Sydney Swans Football Club is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League . The club is based in Sydney, New South Wales. The club, founded in 1874, was known as the South Melbourne Football Club until it relocated to Sydney in 1982 to become the Sydney...
in 2005, who play in the AFL
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
, Australia's most popular football code.
America
- Citibank Argentina
- Citibank Brasil
- Citibank Chile (Bought out by Banco de Chile)
- Citibank Colombia, Cititrust, Citivalores
- Citibank Guatemala
- Banamex Mexico (which owns the California Bank of Commerce)
- Citibank Peru
- Citibank El Salvador Banco Uno
- Citibank Venezuela
- Citibank Ecuador
- Citibank Costa Rica
- Citibank Panama Banco Uno
- Citibank Nicaragua Banco Uno
- Citibank Uruguay
- Citibank Banco de Cuscatlan
Key people
- Vikram PanditVikram PanditVikram S. Pandit is an Indian-born American business executive. He is the current CEO of Citigroup.-Early life:Vikram Pandit was born in Nagpur, India to an affluent Marathi family . His father, S B Pandit was an executive director at Sarabhai Chemicals in Baroda. He completed his schooling at the...
– CEO, CitigroupCitigroupCitigroup Inc. or Citi is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States. Citigroup was formed from one of the world's largest mergers in history by combining the banking giant Citicorp and financial conglomerate... - Richard Parsons – Chairman, CitigroupCitigroupCitigroup Inc. or Citi is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States. Citigroup was formed from one of the world's largest mergers in history by combining the banking giant Citicorp and financial conglomerate...
Cultural references
- Referred to in Rock band Cake's "Short Skirt/Long JacketShort Skirt/Long Jacket"Short Skirt/Long Jacket" is the first single by American alternative rock band Cake from their 2001 album Comfort Eagle.-Music video:The associated music vox pop video is composed entirely of people listening to the song on headphones and their reactions...
" song on the album Comfort EagleComfort EagleComfort Eagle is the fourth studio album by American band Cake. It was released on 24 July 2001. Comfort Eagle was Cake's first release on Columbia Records....
, "... at Citibank we will meet accidentally..."
Further reading
- Wriston: Walter Wriston, Citibank, and the Rise and Fall of American Financial Supremacy. Phillip L. Zweig, New York: Crown, 1996.
- Citibank, 1812–1970. Harold van B. Cleveland & Thomas F. Huertas (Harvard Business History Studies), Boston: Harvard University PressHarvard University PressHarvard University Press is a publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University, and focused on academic publishing. In 2005, it published 220 new titles. It is a member of the Association of American University Presses. Its current director is William P...
, 1985.