Citi

It is one thing to simplify a business plan but quite another to execute it. Nevertheless, Citi appears to be on the verge of making its new simple approach, well, simple.

The cat is out of the bag: the public is aware that if you want to stop something, you have to stop the financing. Right now in the US, that something is guns.

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UBS Wealth Management voted best global private bank; private banks more bullish on revenues; hiring to increase.

While other parts of finance splinter and specialize, in wealth management it looks like bigger really does mean better: UBS wins Euromoney’s Private Banking 2018 survey yet again and the big global franchises continue to take the lion’s share of the industry.

Equities is a business where only the top handful of banks traditionally make money. It is also a sector with shrinking volumes and revenues. So why are two banks outside the top tier – Citi and HSBC – trying to boost their franchises?

While tax reform charges make a bad year worse for US banks, the timing of the law sets the scene for better results in 2018. But the fundamentals may not change: trading is bad, financing is good.

Banks are booking big charges in the fourth quarter, but the domestic names are sitting pretty for the future as US taxes fall.

CEO has broader ambitions as firm turns 10; impact investing still modest in Asia but growing.

The results of the Euromoney Trade Finance Survey 2018 show the emergence of two very different trends: the sustained presence of the global trade finance bank, and the rising influence of regional institutions.

The impediments to providing more trade finance to emerging-market clients are well known, but that does not make them any easier to overcome. Could the ultimate solution be in turning trade finance into an attractive asset class for institutional investors?

Five quarters of profit after years of flat performance; consumer revamp gains traction.

Stock buybacks are a landmark moment in Citi's resurgence

Although banks like talking about bringing digital services to trade finance, a surprisingly low proportion of the 7,000-plus participants in Euromoney’s annual trade finance survey are actually using the technology.

David Miliband, head of the International Rescue Committee, and Jim Cowles, CEO for EMEA at Citi, discuss exclusively with Euromoney how finance can help the refugee crisis at the launch of an initiative.

New recruits show bank sees tangible business from Belt and Road; some will be new hires, others existing staff being moved.

Statements of commitment are gradually appearing, but many banks are still analyzing the provisions of the code against their own businesses before declaring adherence publicly.

HSBC holds top place in both the global financial institutions and non-financial institutions results; global banks dominate but regional banks continue rise.

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Banks are learning about the damage that being on the wrong side of environmental issues can cause.

Citi continues to fire on all cylinders across cash management, trade finance and securities services. It combines scale and market penetration with innovation, and the sense of drive among senior staff in the region is palpable – making it our best bank for transaction services in Asia.

Euromoney has never before given an award in Afghanistan, but the story of Azizi Bank is compelling. Formed by an ethnic business group in 2006 and owned by Dubai’s Azizi Group, it took over the Development Bank of Afghanistan from the central bank in 2009, then India’s Punjab National Bank in 2014. It is Afghanistan’s largest commercial bank, with more than 140 branches and a million customers, and employs 2,300 people, 17% of them women, which does not sound a lot but matters in Afghanistan.

Have HSBC and Citi found a way to cut costs and maintain revenues in Latin America? If so, local banks will not accept that quietly.

Citi was knocked off the top spot in DCM in emerging Europe last year but remains a dominant force in CEE investment banking thanks to its unrivalled on-the-ground presence in the region. The US house has commercial banking operations in Russia, Hungary, Poland and Czech Republic, as well as offices in Turkey, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Bulgaria and Slovakia. These are coordinated with a 22-strong team in Citi’s CEE banking hub in London. Citi is the winner of our award for the best bank for financing in the region.

In a year when the geopolitical environment and the outlook for interest rates took several dramatic turns, investment banks with strength in fixed income and deep local understanding were at an advantage in our award for best bank for markets.

Solving the challenge of the world’s unbanked is going to take investment, innovation, and an ability to bring together key players in payments, fintech and microfinance. No bank is quite as committed to that combination as Citi.

The bank has demonstrated exceptional on-the-ground commitment and understanding of its clients across all regions.