Citigroup revealed more about its job cuts
It's not just JPMorgan that's reported its third quarter results today. Citigroup has released its Q3 results too. It's revealed more about its job cuts in the process.
In its Q3 presentation, Citi says it plans to cut its management layers from 13 to eight and to eliminate around 60 'net committees' or 13% of its committees in phase one. It's also "optimized" its top two management layers and cut around 15% of functional roles.
More detail is likely to be provided in the investor call later today.
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Citi said previously that the cuts would continue into next year. However, there are signs that senior people are leaving already. Izzy Halpert, a US technology MD, left this month, seemingly without a role to go to. Milad Hadziabdic, a London-based managing director left preemptively for ADQ in Abu Dhabi in September. Mark Pickering, an MD in private markets in London, has gone to become a vertical farmer. And Brian Bednarski, an MD in the north American transaction execution group, has disappeared. It's not clear whether they were cut or left of their own volition.
Some of the cuts Citi has made already appear mysterious in light of today's results. For example, the bank said today that its rates and currencies business just had the best third quarter for a decade, and yet the bank made surprise cuts to its macro strategy team in June. In the nine months to October, Citi's macro trading revenues rose 4%, while its spread (credit trading) revenues fell 11%. By comparison, FX and emerging markets revenues fell at JPMorgan.
Equity capital market revenues were the other high point of today's Citi results, rising 32% year-on-year in the third quarter after a miserable 2022.
Despite heavy investment in equities trading in the past few years, Citi's equities results remain lackluster. They were down 3% in the third quarter even while fixed income revenues rose 14%. Citi blamed this on a decline in its equity derivatives business.
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