Is CitiBank India Selling Off Consumer Banking Division? This Is What Management Is Saying..

Citibank NA is reportedly on its way to close down its consumer banking division. The business is apparently facing a decline, primarily due to the lockdown and the pandemic that caused it.

Read on to find out all the details!

Citibank To Shut Down Consumer Banking Unit In India

Citibank NA is the largest foreign bank in India and yet, the bank is all set to follow the footsteps of the several other overseas lenders who have had to shut down their business in India over the past few years. New reports have confirmed that the bank is planning to shut down its consumer banking unit in India as well. 

Recently, there was news that  the bank is planning to divest some units in retail banking in the Asia Pacific region, including those in South Korea, Thailand, the Philippines, and Australia.

Apparently, this decision to shut down the consumer banking unit is majorly based on the recent COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdown that was imposed to curb its spreading. The business of Citibank reportedly saw a decline because of this and stress in retail portfolios has also been observed.

On the other hand, HSBC has reported a record breaking $1 billion profit in India quite recently.

Citibank To Consider Multiple Options Before Making Decisions

Last month, Citigroup has stated, “As our incoming CEO Jane Fraser said in January, we are undertaking a dispassionate and thorough review of our strategy, including our mix of businesses and how they fit together. As you would expect, many different options are being considered and we will take the right amount of time before making any decisions.

Citibank has around 2.9 million retail customers, 1.2 million bank accounts and about 2.2 million credit card accounts.

The bank holds around 6% share in credit card spends and 5.87% market share in digital payments. About 26% of the foreign portfolio investment comes through Citibank India. The bank employs 19000 people across 35 branches in India.