Citigroup plans to wind down its consumer and local commercial banking business in Russia amid Moscow’s conflict with Ukraine and expects to incur nearly $170 million in costs over the next 18 months.
The company will also focus on selling “certain” Russian banking portfolios as it prepares to exit the country starting this quarter, it said in a statement posted on its website on Thursday.
Citi’s decision is expected to affect nearly 2,300 employees and 15 branches of the bank in Russia.
The bank, however, will continue to support its multinational institutional clients, which are undergoing the “complex task of winding down their operations in Russia”, it said.
“Today’s decision is part of our continuing efforts to reduce our activities in Russia,” David Livingstone, Citi’s chief executive of Europe, Middle East and Africa, said.
“It is aligned with other actions, including limiting our service offering, reducing our exposures and not soliciting any new business or clients.”
The move by the banking major comes as a number of companies are closing their operations in Russia, following sanctions imposed by Western countries on Moscow for invading Ukraine in February.
Oil and gas companies including BP, Shell and Equinor announced plans to exit Russia earlier this year. Starbucks, McDonald’s and Nike are also leaving Russia or have left.
“It’s clear that the wind-down path makes the most sense given the many complicating factors in the environment,” Titi Cole, Citi's chief executive of legacy franchises, said. “We are focused on supporting our impacted colleagues, clients and partners during this period of transition.”
At the end of the second quarter of 2022, Citi’s exposure to Russia stood at $8.4 billion — down from $9.8bn at the end of 2021. Nearly $1bn of its exposure is related to the consumer and local commercial banking businesses in Russia, the lender said.
Citi first revealed its plan to exit Russian consumer banking operations in April 2021, as part of a global strategy to close consumer franchises in 14 markets in Asia, Europe, Middle East and Africa and Mexico.
In March, after the war in Ukraine had started, Citi expanded the scope of its planned exit in Russia to include local commercial banking.
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%C2%A0%3C%2Fstrong%3EHayao%20Miyazaki%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%C2%A0Soma%20Santoki%2C%20Masaki%20Suda%2C%20Ko%20Shibasaki%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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Global Fungi Facts
• Scientists estimate there could be as many as 3 million fungal species globally
• Only about 160,000 have been officially described leaving around 90% undiscovered
• Fungi account for roughly 90% of Earth's unknown biodiversity
• Forest fungi help tackle climate change, absorbing up to 36% of global fossil fuel emissions annually and storing around 5 billion tonnes of carbon in the planet's topsoil
Premier League results
Saturday
Crystal Palace 1 Brighton & Hove Albion 2
Cardiff City 2 West Ham United 0
Huddersfield Town 0 Bournemouth 2
Leicester City 3 Fulham 1
Newcastle United 3 Everton 2
Southampton 2 Tottenham Hotspur 1
Manchester City 3 Watford 1
Sunday
Liverpool 4 Burnley 2
Chelsea 1 Wolverhampton Wanderers 1
Arsenal 2 Manchester United 0
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
The specs
Engine: Two permanent-magnet synchronous AC motors
Transmission: two-speed
Power: 671hp
Torque: 849Nm
Range: 456km
Price: from Dh437,900
On sale: now
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
Where to buy
Limited-edition art prints of The Sofa Series: Sultani can be acquired from Reem El Mutwalli at www.reemelmutwalli.com
