Vikram Pandit, Citigroup Chief: Bank Will Exceed Regulatory Requirements

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Citigroup Inc is on track to exceed expected regulatory requirements and shrink its worst assets to less than 20 percent of its balance sheet, Chief Executive Vikram Pandit told employees in an end-of-year internal memo on Monday.

The Treasury earlier this month sold its remaining shares in the Citigroup, ending a long and difficult chapter for the bank after it received $45 billion in three government bailouts during the financial crisis.

Like other U.S. banks, Citi -- which returned to profitability this year -- is also trying to grapple with new rules put in place to try and prevent a repeat of the crisis.

"We believe we are poised to meet and exceed anticipated regulatory requirements," Pandit wrote in the memo.

"The past three years have been challenging, but I believe we now have in place all the elements for sustained profitability and responsible growth," he later added.

The bank, which struggled amid mounting losses on credit cards and mortgages, has been selling some of its assets from its Citi Holdings unit. Citi last month sold a $1.4 billion real estate loan portfolio to OneWest bank, helping it shrink Citi Holdings to less than 20 percent of Citi's total balance sheet.

Citi shares were flat at $4.77 on Tuesday. The shares have climbed 44 percent since the start of the year.

(Reporting by Elinor Comlay; Editing by Bernard Orr)

Copyright 2010 Thomson Reuters. Click for Restrictions.

Comments

[Sundialsvc4]

11:58 AM on 12/30/2010

Flim. Flam. Flim. Flam.

Now, just keep your eye on the little ball. Nothing to it. You'll be rich. Just keep your eye on the little ball.

First I'll sweep all the mortgage losses from the little cup representing the bank and put them under the little cup that is the finance company which, although directly owned by the owners of the bank, isn't the bank. Then I'll sweep those losses under the little cup of the credit-default swap insurance company which, although directly owned by the owners of the bank and of the finance company, is neither the bank nor the finance company. Keep your eye on the little ball. I will now take those losses and sell them to the finance company as "valuable accounts receivable," which the finance company will now package as an equally "valuable" security and sell on the market. The bank, which as you recall is neither the finance company nor the insurance company will invest in those "AAA+" securities.

Now, this other little cup over here is marked "Washington, DC," and I am careful to sweep a steady supply of gold under THAT cup, because that's where all the lawmakers and regulators ("regulators"... guffaw... that's a good one, eh?) live.

As you can plainly see, the financial status of the banking operation is now spotlessly clean. It's simply a matter of how you choose to look at things.

Yes, yes. How you choose to look at things...

[jo smith456]

09:30 AM on 12/30/2010

SORRY, forgot the links
-Incoming GOP House Finance Panel Chair: Gov’t Should "Serve the Banks"! http://www.democracynow.org/2010/12/14/headlines#5
-The Fed Reserve lends 3.3 TRILLION to its "members": http://www­.huffingto­npost.com/­2010/12/01­/federal-r­eserve-doc­uments_1_n­_790433.ht­ml
-Super-rich and rich borrow for "nothing" : http://www­.huffingto­npost.com/­2010/12/01­/wall-stre­et-borrowe­d-from_n_7­90709.html
-Federal Reserve inner details REVEALED: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rep-bernie-sanders/a-real-jaw-dropper-at-the_b_791091.html
-Big Banks Secret COLLUSION: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/11/derivatives-clearinghouses-banks-wall-street-_n_795456.html

[jo smith456]

09:27 AM on 12/30/2010

WHAT A SHOW:

Fed Reserve (in which citi is a member) creates money or liquidity guarantee for its members' use to help its members repay the govt.

[jo smith456]

09:32 AM on 12/30/2010

-Incoming GOP House Finance Panel Chair: Gov’t Should "Serve the Banks"! http://www.democracynow.org/2010/12/14/headlines#5
-The Fed Reserve lends 3.3 TRILLION to its members: http://www­.huffingto­npost.com/­2010/12/01­/federal-r­eserve-doc­uments_1_n­_790433.ht­ml
-Super-rich and rich borrow for "nothing" : http://www­.huffingto­npost.com/­2010/12/01­/wall-stre­et-borrowe­d-from_n_7­90709.html
-Federal Reserve inner details REVEALED: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rep-bernie-sanders/a-real-jaw-dropper-at-the_b_791091.html
-Big Banks Secret COLLUSION: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/11/derivatives-clearinghouses-banks-wall-street-_n_795456.html

[PoliticiansRspineless]

10:11 PM on 12/29/2010

He should be slurping a slurpee behind bars and remiinising about the good ol days

[mdmccormick]

08:42 PM on 12/29/2010

Wow, they are going to exceed this watered down version of financial reform they wrote! I am impressed NOT

[thebigbike]

07:33 PM on 12/29/2010

It's been a sad day for the country, and indeed the world, when financial institutions become direct air polluters in the form of carbon monoxide and PM 2.5 ad PM 10 particulate matters, deriving from literally THOUSANDS of pairs of pants on fire.

[Cougar29]

04:43 PM on 12/29/2010

Sandy Weill, Bob Rubin, Chuck Prince and the Board are totally culpable for its demise..

[ninesix]

01:37 PM on 12/29/2010

Pandit is no different from Obama. Tell me if this story sounds familiar:

White guy does irreversible damage for the duration of his term as citi CEO. Then a new face emerges! Promising to "Only take $1 salary until books are balanced" or to exceed bank regulations. But what will happen is nothing. The real guy running the show gets a new puppy america can be distracted with. Until that puppy gets older and is replaced by a cuter puppy? Rinse, lather, repeat.

Vikram had a chance to bring Citi up to speed by acquiring Wachovia. We all know how that went.

[jo smith456]

09:29 AM on 12/30/2010

this is guy has allowed himself to be lapdog or the behind powers-that-be... IOW, he is part of the gang of...

[marknez21]

12:57 PM on 12/29/2010

Chief Executive Lier Vikram Pandit told employees : Citibank is on track to exceed expected regulatory requirements and shrink its worst assets to less than 20 percent of its balance sheet.

This CROOKS cheat their own employees. PLEASE Chief Executive Lier Pandit tell the truth.

[banker67]

12:10 PM on 12/29/2010

Yes, folks, this multi-millionaire promises -- cross his heart -- to be good this year. Because he made no such promises in any year, his company has regrettably all but destroyed our economy while stuffing Swiss bank accounts with tax money.
But this time, he and his pals will try harder to obey the law, instead of buying legislators and regulators off by the hundreds.
Honest, fellas, we promise.

[baileywick]

07:25 PM on 12/29/2010

It worked in November.

[banker67]

09:18 AM on 12/30/2010

And it will work again in 2012.
If you can so easily sell tax cuts for the super rich, it's clearly a seller's market for Martian real estate.

[BBackSoon]

12:08 PM on 12/29/2010

You mean the requirements that they have fought tooth and nail and made sure didn't really happen?

[Louis Leo IV]

12:06 PM on 12/29/2010

What regulatory requirements?

[jwilson1]

11:19 AM on 12/29/2010

Citi group is the worst bank and a return to profitability on the backs of millions of Americans...stop doing business with this bank move your money.