Citigroup plans to lay off less than 1% of its workforce amid fears of recession

The year 2022 was a benchmark for layoffs, but 2023 is far worse as companies across industries are eliminating positions, resulting in mass layoffs. Citigroup is the latest to join the bandwagon as it plans to lay off less than 1 per cent of its workforce, barring its remediation team working on a consent order, news agency Reuters reported.

Earlier, it was reported that the American bank was looking at eliminating dozens of jobs across its investment banking division, as a dealmaking slump continues to weigh on Wall Street’s biggest banks.

This comes after private sector lender Axis Bank announced that it has completed the acquisition of Citigroup's India consumer business from Citibank N.A. and NBFC consumer business from Citicorp Finance (India) Ltd.

Citigroup's remediation team is working on a 2020 consent order imposed by regulators demanding it to enhance its risk management and internal controls, which has resulted in significant investment in addressing the issues.

As of its fourth quarter in 2022, Citigroup reported a workforce of 240,000 employees.

"We're actively hiring to execute against our strategy. But we're also replacing where that makes sense in light of the environment that we're in," Citigroup Chief Financial Officer Mark Mason said in a January earnings briefing.

Meanwhile, Citigroup Inc paid Chief Executive Jane Fraser $24.5 million for 2022, up 9 per cent from the prior year.  

The announcement of layoffs comes as corporate America is cutting thousands of jobs to rein in costs amid growing fears of a recession. Some of the companies which have already done layoffs include: Meta, Morgan Stanley, Intel, Microsoft, Johnson & Johnson, Twitter, Lyft and others.

Citigroup reported a 21 per cent fall in fourth-quarter profit last month, missing forecasts, as the bank increased provisions to prepare for a worsening economy and as investment banking revenue declined due to a sharp drop in dealmaking activity.

Recently, Citibank has removed the signboard from its iconic Kanak building office in Kolkata's Chowringhee Road. This happened right after the acquisition of India’s oldest foreign lenders' consumer business by Axis Bank.

Also Read: Citibank removes signboard from Kolkata office as part of rebranding exercise with Axis bank

Also Read: Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser gets a pay hike! Gets $24.5 million paycheck in 2022

Also Read: Meta, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, other corporate giants lean on job cuts as recession fears mount