Citigroup Gets Thrifty: Cuts Color Copies, BlackBerrys

NEW YORK (AP) -- Citigroup Inc. isn't just eliminating jobs to slash costs -- it's also clamping down on color copying and BlackBerrys.

In a recent memo to Citigroup employees detailing new efforts to trim expenses, John Havens -- who runs the company's institutional clients group -- wrote that "color copying and printing should only be used for client presentations," and that "presentations should be printed double-sided to reduce unnecessary paper usage."

Additionally, the bank is reviewing employees' BlackBerry use, and is now requiring pre-approval for the devices.

"Only necessary business related calls will be reimbursed," the memo said.

The memo, dated Aug. 15, also said that Citigroup will no longer hold meetings outside its own facilities for internal purposes, and that it is limiting external training and the use of management consultants, among other resources.

The moves are yet another step in the bank's attempt to become profitable again after three straight quarters of losses. Citigroup, currently the nation's largest bank by assets, has already eliminated more than 14,000 jobs this year and raised about $40 billion in capital after losing a cumulative $17.4 billion during the last quarter of 2007 and the first two quarters of this year.

The bank has been selling off its assets as well. During the second quarter, Citi lopped off $99 billion from its total assets, which stood at $2.02 trillion as of June 30. In May, Chief Executive Vikram Pandit announced that the bank would reduce its balance sheet by about $400 billion to $500 billion over the next few years.

Citigroup shares rose 23 cents, or 1.3 percent, to $17.84 Tuesday.

Analysts are split over whether Citigroup will post a profit for the third quarter, but on average, they expect a profit of 3 cents per share, according to Thomson Financial.

Comments

[Anciano]

They're so hard up for cash that they have instituted a kickback scheme whereby if a customer's car gets towed from a Citibank lot, they not only do not pay the towing company (standard procedure) but get a 30% kickback on the tow from the towing company when the car is redeemed.

[Dan1967]

Sarah Palin is currently embroiled in a scandal in Alaska for firing her former brother in law who is a State Trooper and in a custody battle with Palin's sister. I copied and pasted part of the article below and link to the full article is here: http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/08/ak_gov_says_staffer_pressed_for_troopers_firing.php

AK Gov. Says Staffer Pressed for Trooper's Firing
By Kate Klonick - August 13, 2008, 9:53PM
In a press conference this afternoon, Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK) conceded that someone inside her administration pressured the state's Department of Public Safety to fire State Trooper Mike Wooten, Palin's former brother-in-law, who is now embroiled in a bitter custody battle with Palin's sister.
Palin's statement is the latest in what has come to be known around Alaska as "Wooten-gate." The scandal began on July 11, when Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan was fired from his post with little explanation, a move that quickly raised questions in Alaska.

VOTE FOR BARACK OBAMA AND LETS GET A DEMOCRAT WIN IN NOVEMBER!

[Daniel8168]

Wasn't it CitiGroup that sold about 40% of it's shares to a Dubai investor?

Anyway, nothing to worry about folks - Bush Jr will bail them out with our tax dollars just like his daddy did with the savings and loan crooks. And to think, many of you never would have even considered investing in Citigroup - you won't have to consider it, Bush Jr will do it without your approval.

And to think, the republicans preach against government bailouts. Of course, what they really mean is that the government shouldn't try to help anyone unless they've received billions in lobbying efforts from those that need help. Funny how there should be a free, unregulated market until someone they are beholden to needs a little relief.

[heal57]

aw shucks. Citibank is having problems; geez that gave it's customers nothing but problems for many years.........such is life.

[firsacker]

Brilliant move, CitiBank! Eliminating $.49 color copies-what's next, using smaller fonts to conserve disk space? I'm sure the mis-management of millions of dollars of capital & resources has nothing to do with the current situation you find yourselves in. Actually, without color, investors can't see the red ink-or is that the idea? If only Enron would have thought of that. Let me know when to schedule my garage sale to benfit your execs, won't you?

[ugmold]

Sounds like every Corp.

[jpcline004]

The amount of productivity lost by forcing your staff to itemize their phone bill is probably greater than the cost of just reimbursing the whole thing.

[wm1066]

Yep, seen it hapen before. Sometimes in those lower level meetings you need a color graph and now these people will have to jump through hoops to get done. Meanwhile the CEO"S and VP's wont give up a thing.

[DayoftheLiberal]

To a real economist, pervasive corporate waste like we have in our culture really boils down to another hidden tax on consumers. Their new austerity measures are nothing less than tacit acknowledgment that Citigroup's practices in general are wasteful. Cutting consultants is the best move they could make but it's too little too late. Precious few corporate types are worth the perks they get, hopefully this is the beginning of the end of a way of life, but I doubt it.

[Halsey]

Citigroup, Wachovia, B of A...all prime examples of growing too big..too fast...buying up everything ..some sort of "compensation" for small weenies I think (sorry...but it's like the little guy buying a HUMMER...to look bigger)... any architect will tell you, there becomes a stage (floor)..at which a skyscraper becomes inefficient...just takes too much money.energy etc..to reach the top floors...well..this behemouth banking enterprises are too big... B of A buying CountryWide?...I mean..WTF?

and...geez..people should (common sense)..double side any printing...it's called TREES..for crissakes.. but idiots had to be told to do this...my gawd...common sense...an endangered species in america today... Citigroup will survive...but the bloodbath won't be over for another quarter or two..

[iambusto]

sometimes getting bigger has its perks.

"Economies of Scale" ring a bell?

Walmart can squeeze the suppliers more than a small retailer can.

[wm1066]

That is why I don't shop Wallmart.
And why should a small retailer squeeze his suppliers?
Your business model sounds like it was thought up in hell.

[LeftRight]

And how many multi-million dollar executives have they asked to take a pay cut????? How many have they fired???? And how many people that they payed under $100,000/year have they fired?

EXACTLY!

[Daniel8168]

That's probably the funniest thing about situations like this - they keep the over-paid decision makers that screwed the pooch in the first place, and fire all the desk-jockeys that had no real culpability in the failings of the organization.

It's like cutting off your arms and legs to treat a brain tumor - doesn't make a whole lot of sense, and certainly doesn't fix the real problem.

[themodernleader]

Under Reagan our government encouraged the undoing of an essentially decentralized economic and financial system. Corporations were created by Wall Street money to destroy the independent small retailer and manufacturer. The great manufacturing corporations were bought, looted and resold at the expense of their membership. Banking power was consolidated into super banks such as CItibank.
Now the entire system is bankrupt and broken. The elementary school lesson is that it is better to leave a good system alone. Of course that lesson is learned on the broken backs of the vast numbers of our citizens and the crdibility of our governance.
Any novelist who wrote a story how the greatest, most powerful country on the face of the earth would commit itself to self destruction within a period of a quarter century would not have a credible story. Yet, we allowed this to happen to ourselves for the advantage and greed of ignominous leaders.

[robjh1]

Why don't all admit the truth Sanford Weill messed up! He was not and is not the savior Wall Street made him out to be.

[blowhard]

These are corporate executives at their idiotic best. Color copies and blackberries are not Citi's problem. They poorly understood/understand risk management and took on stupid MBS risks. Mortgages collapsed and created ripple effects on other sectors - creating correlations where none were expected.

These idiots get paid millions of money to bullshit the market and manage the money of stupid rich Republicans. I feel bad for the ordinary Citi employee but f^^k the executives.

[DayoftheLiberal]

Management consultants are most likely the ones that came up with all the bright ideas for mortgage derivatives, etc, and charged hefty fees for doing it. These people need to get regulated back down to earth.

[KQuarksSuperKollider]

My wife just got off the phone with Citimortgage. We had one late payment and they had trying to put us into foreclosure a couple months after that. They kept on sending us statements with larger and larger sums that we owed. We payed back what they said we owed plus attorney fees to get back current. Than a couple months later they said we were going to go in foreclosure again.

Well we finally got it resolved just today why because they admitted messed up. They had not applied over $10,000 mortgage account that we have been sending them since January. They said we should have never been close to being in foreclosure for that reason. They deducted all the legal fees and all the late fees now we have a credit.

The whole notion that private business is more efficient than government is simply a fallacy now. It's literally a cr ap shoot you deal with incompetent person after incompetent person until you get someone who knows how to do their job. Businesses were more competent in the past but with all the mergers and layoffs American businesses have become cesspools of incompetence just like our government under Rethuglican rule.

And McBush wants to privatize Social Security. No way! No how! No McCain!

[LordMoon]

I wonder if this means our credit card interest rates will go to 45%?

But many are predicting that will be the next problem area of the economy, credit cards.

I wonder how many millions of people are just about ready to stop paying on their unsecured debt?