“Due to the nature of the banking and financial services business, this decision will take time to execute,” said the group’s head of public affairs.
Citigroup, the US bank most exposed to Russia, announced on Monday that it would expand the scope of activities it already plans to sell or suspend in the country.
Reacting to the invasion of Ukraine, the establishment had indicated that it was “evaluating (its) operations” in Russia, following having already announced last year its intention to sell its banking operations there. Retail.
In a message on Monday, Citigroup’s head of public affairs, Edward Skyler, announced that the bank had decided to cease operating “other lines of business” in Russia, without specifying which ones.
“Due to the nature of banking and financial services business, this decision will take time to execute,” he warned.
The bank has also decided “to stop soliciting new projects or new customers,” added Mr. Skyler.
In an investor presentation in early March, the bank confirmed that it had approximately $9.8 billion in total exposure to Russia at the end of 2021.
The financial director then specified that according to one of the most severe scenarios anticipated by the bank, “a little less than half” might be at stake.
Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase already announced last week that they were shedding their Russian operations, becoming the first major Wall Street institutions to distance themselves from Moscow following the invasion of Ukraine.