Citibank

2008–2009 losses and cost cutting measures

Citi reported losing $8–11 billion several days after Merrill Lynch announced that it too had been losing billions from the subprime mortgage crisis in the United States.

On April 11, 2007, the parent Citi announced staff cuts and relocations.[8]

On November 4, 2007, Charles Prince quit as the chairman and chief executive of Citigroup, following crisis meetings with the board in New York in the wake of billions of dollars in losses related to subprime lending.

Former United States Secretary of the Treasury Robert Rubin has been asked to replace ex-CEO Charles Prince to manage the losses Citi has amassed over the years of being over-exposed to subprime lending during the 2002–2007 surge in the real estate industry.

In August 2008, after a three-year investigation by California’s Attorney General Citibank was ordered to repay the $14 million (close to $18 million including interest and penalties) that was removed from 53,000 customers accounts over an 11-year period from 1992 to 2003. The money was taken under a computerized “account sweeping program” where any positive balances from over-payments or double payments were removed without notice to the customers.[9]

On November 23, 2008, Citigroup was forced to seek federal financing to avoid a collapse similar to those suffered by its competitors Bear Stearns and AIG. The U.S. government provided $25 billion and guarantees to risky assets to Citigroup in exchange for stock. This was one of a series of companies receiving financial aid from the government that began with Bear Stearns and peaked with the collapse of Lehman, AIG, and the GSE’s, and the start of the TARP program.

On January 16, 2009, Citigroup announced that it was splitting into two businesses. Citicorp will continue with the traditional banking business while Citi Holdings Inc. operates non-core businesses such as brokerage, asset management, and local consumer finance as well as managing a set of higher-risk assets. The split was presented as allowing Citibank to concentrate on its core banking business.[10]

Oh yeah. Free market capitalism. They get 0% loans from the government and a bailout for their screwup. Then they turn around and screw the consumer. Enough is enough. OWS rocks.