NEW YORK (AFP) - Citigroup, reeling from the subprime mortgage crisis, said Friday it plans to sell roughly 400 billion dollars in assets in a streamlining reorganization aimed at restoring the US banking giant to profit.
The announcement was made by the new chief executive, Vikram Pandit, in a presentation to the financial community on the ailing bank’s strategy.
Citigroup has hemorrhaged nearly 45 billion dollars in the past nine months in losses and write-downs amid soured subprime-related bets.
The bank said it wants to sell the non-core assets, representing about 20 percent of its 2.2 trillion dollars in assets, over the next two or three years.
The vast majority of the assets to be shed are within its consumer banking and securities banking operations, 63 percent and 34 percent, respectively.
The unprecedented sweeping downsizing undertaken by Pandit, who became CEO in December, marks a bold change in direction for the bank and its sprawling businesses.
The bank said it wanted to focus on stability and growth, citing its unique global presence and a “large footprint in (the) fastest-growing areas in the world.”
The financial services colossus said it was targeting net revenue growth of around 10 percent for its core operations within a two- to three-year timeframe.
“The industry is looking for what the future is …
