US' Citigroup to exit 13 countries in consumer banking

By Ovunc Kutlu

ANKARA (AA) - Citigroup announced on Thursday it will exit from consumer banking markets in 13 countries.

The move is part of Citi's ongoing strategic review "to direct investments and resources to the businesses where it has the greatest scale and growth potential," it said in a statement.

The US-based multinational investment banking company said it will focus its global consumer bank presence in Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Africa on four wealth centers -- Singapore, Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates and London.

"As a result of the ongoing refresh of our strategy, we have decided that we are going to double down on wealth," said CEO Jane Fraser.

"While the other 13 markets have excellent businesses, we don’t have the scale we need to compete. We believe our capital, investment dollars and other resources are better deployed against higher returning opportunities in wealth management and our institutional businesses in Asia," she added.

The countries include Australia, Bahrain, China, India, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Poland, Russia, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.

Fraser noted that the four centers will position the company to capture strong growth and attractive returns through the wealth management business.