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Citi intensifies restructuring efforts to maximize and streamline operations Vincent Perretti January 24, 2024 Citigroup Inc. will reorganize its management structure and shut down some of its businesses as part of the financial institution’s next steps to restructure itself. Citi previously said it would make the five leaders of its businesses a part of the newly formed executive management team, with Citi CEO Jane Fraser noting that this would result in massive layoffs. Since the announcement on Sept. 13, 2023, Citi disclosed in its third-quarter earnings report that it had optimized the top two layers of management — equating to a 15% reduction in functional roles — and eliminated 60 of its management committees to “unlock the value of Citi.” Citi noted that it aims to remove five management layers from the current 13 layers. Shortly after earnings results were released, managers and consultants at Citi reportedly began discussing the scale and costs of job cuts. An estimated 10% of staff would be cut, causing widespread anxiety within the financial institution. “Morale is super, super low,” a former banker at Citi, whose name was undisclosed for protection, told CNBC. Former colleagues have said, “‘I don’t know if I’m getting hit or if my manager is getting hit,’” the banker added. “People are bracing for the worst.” Citi announced on Nov. 20, 2023, that it would begin the next wave of job cuts across its layers of management. “Today, we shared with our colleagues the next layer of changes across many of our businesses and functions as we continue to align Citi’s organizational structure with our new, simplified operating model,” Citi said in a statement. “As we’ve acknowledged, the actions we’re taking to reorganize the firm involve some difficult, consequential decisions, but we believe they are the right steps to align our structure with our strategy and ensure we consistently deliver excellence to our clients,” Citi added. Bloomberg reported that the company cut more than 300 roles in senior management, which is two layers below the executive management team. This amounted to 10% of job cuts at that level. “On one hand you have the staff where there is a lot of anxiety, of course, because they are looking at every division across the world at every level,” Sonali Basak, a financial correspondent for Bloomberg, said in a broadcast. “But then you also have to think about the investor response to all of this as well, because since [Jane Fraser] announced that she would be taking these actions, you’ve seen Citi’s stock rally another 9%,” she added. “And so investors have really welcomed the move because Citigroup has seen as it’s been very bloated for a very long time.” Mark Mason, chief financial officer at Citi, later said during a conference in December 2023 that the restructuring would cost $1 billion and has caused the responsibilities of other chief financial officers to fall under him.

WHO ARE STRATEGIC ACQUIRERS LOOKING FOR? -Strategic Acquirers generally prefer firms that understand what drives Value and Performance. -They look to acquire firms that already show: 1-Growth 2-Productivity 3-Profitability 4- Client Satisfaction Advisors who want to be considered as part of a target profile should ask themselves - Will Strategic Acquirers consider me VALUABLE? If you would like guidance on how to conduct that analysis, or if you are interested in learning more about what a transition opportunity could mean for your career and practice, send me a DM or email me at peter@guiderightconsulting.com to have a confidential conversation. #financialadvisor #wealthmanagement #morganstanley #ubs #merrilllynch #wellsfargo

"Warren Buffett Encourages Citi CEO's Overhaul Plans" Billionaire investor Warren Buffett has advised Citigroup Inc.'s CEO, Jane Fraser, to continue with the bank's ongoing reorganization efforts. This comes as Citigroup is in the midst of a comprehensive overhaul, including the elimination of 20,000 jobs. Fraser shared insights from her lunch meeting with Buffett, emphasizing his support for the bank's restructuring initiatives. The advice from one of Citigroup's major shareholders underscores the significance of the ongoing changes at the bank. #WarrenBuffett #Citigroup #CEO #reorganization #investing #businessoverhaul

In an aggressive push to become more competitive, Jefferies has been making changes across their Investment Banking advisory business. The bank has been chasing increasingly large deals and signaled that bankers would have to increase their revenue significantly or be shown the door. Jefferies has already begun to cut current bankers and replace them with new “upgraded” talent. This comes as the firm just recently lost its two co-heads of FinTech banking and makes further cuts throughout the department. Now, facing an increasingly active hiring market, banks are resorting to hefty break-up fees to penalize new hires who renege on signed offers.  #investmentbanking #banking #marketupdates #hiring #EMMResearch

After Harvard, Jamie Dimon rejected Goldman to work for Sandy Weill at Amex. 15 years later, their partnership created CitiGroup. It’s a wild story. Full of lessons. Here are the highlights: When Dimon finished HBS and was contemplating which job to take (Goldman or MS), Weill offered an alternative: to be his assistant at American Express, which had recently acquired Shearson. Weill didn't have any portfolio at Amex, but he saw something in a young Jamie Dimon. Jamie for his part was an adventurer. And he couldn't pass up the chance to learn from a guy who'd done it at the highest level. They soon left Amex and Weill bought Commercial Credit. They built a minnow into an acquisition machine and bought company after company. Primerica, Salomon Brothers, Shearon and then Travellers, all became targets. Weill was a dealmaking opportunist. Dimon was the execution machine. He was decades younger than most of his colleagues. Yet he was running, at various points, investment banking, asset management, corporate banking, and other crucial parts of a business moving at breakneck speed. And he was across every single deal they did. Sandy would set the target, put the ball in motion, and Dimon would bring it home. Buying a sizable financial company is a tremendous undertaking. Hundreds of things can break. Systems, risk, cost, people, assets, and so on. Doing it on repeat for a decade-plus? Unheard of. Jamie Dimon was instrumental at a young age in making it happen. In 1998, their partnership reached its zenith. They merged Traveller's Group (the name of their conglomerate) with CitiBank to create CitiGroup. One of the largest financial institutions in the world. Trillions in value. From a two-man partnership. Because of an unlikely hire by a former stockbroker. Iconic.

Big promotions are a key driver of progress in the corporate world. It's fascinating to watch how they can transform entire organizations. As the saying goes, "no human, no progress." Check out this interesting article on how Dan Dees at Goldman Sachs probably will make waves in the finance industry. #financejobs #careerdevelopment #business #headhunting Link: https://lnkd.in/e6c-JyQZ

Citi’s Q1 earnings are beginning to recover after it took on major losses in the previous quarter as part of a massive restructuring spearheaded by CEO Jane Fraser. It’s #wealth unit income of $150M was down 6% from a year earlier. Citi’s CFO Mark Mason told reporters the wealth group is going to be laser-focused on existing clients. Here’s more on that and the larger corporate overhaul that includes a 20K headcount reduction and exiting 14 countries through 2026. #Citi #Earnings #wealthmanagement #JaneFraser #layoffs

SCOOP for Barron's: Citi's #wealthmanagement business is struggling to deliver even its most fundamental services efficiently, prompting a “deterioration” in client trust, according to details from an internal audit reviewed by Barron’s. The previously unreported results of a review the bank conducted with consulting firm EY this year show Citi’s wealth management arm is lagging behind competitors in core parts of the business. The report pinpointed issues ranging from a “cumbersome” account-opening process and a disorganized system for managing client information to a workforce that is not as lean as some competitors—even after sweeping job cuts. “Wealth is a core pillar of Citi’s strategy. Our leadership team is going deep to transform the business by putting strong programs in place and uncovering opportunities to improve,” a Citi spokesperson told Barron’s on Tuesday. A ton of details in here about this review. Please keep sending me feedback and tips at rebecca.ungarino@barrons.com!

After Harvard, Jamie Dimon rejected Goldman to work for Sandy Weill. It was an insane bet. Weill was about to leave Amex. He didn't even have a portfolio. 15 years later, their partnership created CitiGroup. It’s a wild story. Full of lessons. Here are the highlights When Dimon finished HBS and was contemplating which job to take (Goldman or MS), Weill offered an alternative: to be his assistant at American Express, which had recently acquired Shearson. Weill didn't have any portfolio at Amex, but he saw something in a young Jamie Dimon. Jamie for his part was an adventurer. And he couldn't pass up the chance to learn from a guy who'd done it at the highest level. They soon left Amex and Weill bought Commercial Credit. They built a minnow into an acquisition machine and bought company after company. Primerica, Salomon Brothers, Shearon and then Travellers, all became targets. Weill was a dealmaking opportunist. Dimon was the execution machine. He was decades younger than most of his colleagues. Yet he was running, at various points, investment banking, asset management, corporate banking, and other crucial parts of a business moving at breakneck speed. And he was across every single deal they did. Sandy would set the target, put the ball in motion, and Dimon would bring it home. Buying a sizable financial company is a tremendous undertaking. Hundreds of things can break. Systems, risk, cost, people, assets, and so on. Doing it on repeat for a decade-plus? Unheard of. Jamie Dimon was instrumental at a young age in making it happen. In 1998, their partnership reached its zenith. They merged Traveller's Growup (the name of their conglomerate) with CitiBank to create CitiGroup. One of the largest financial institutions in the world. Trillions in value. From a two-man partnership. Because of an unlikely hire by a former stockbroker. Iconic.

Recruiting deals continue to be aggressive into 2024. As we move into the new year many firms are continuing their aggressive pursuit of adding quality financial advisors to their rosters. In the last 60 days of 2023, I consulted with four advisors who made successful transitions to new firms. Two of these transitions were W-2 bank advisors moving to the 1099 Independent space. One was a wire house advisor moving to a boutique W-2 firm with an equity offering, and the other was an independent 1099 advisor joining a new RIA. Collectively, these advisors represent over $5 million in annual revenue and just under $1 billion in AUM. While each went to different firms based on their individual needs and what was most important to them, the common thread was each firm's willingness to provide a quality transition package along with a support team to assist in transitioning assets. With some of the recent firm consolidation and more competition to land quality advisors, now is a great time to explore the plethora of options available to you. A positive change in your future could be a phone call away and I'm here to help. Troy Simmons Managing Director Bridgemark Strategies 480-799-4826 troy@bridgemarkstrategies.com #BridgemarkStrategies #Whydoitalone