Taipei Times (TT): What is your view on the sale of Taiwan’s consumer banking businesses to DBS?
Citi Asia-Pacific chief executive officer Peter Babej: It was a difficult decision, but the right decision in the long term for our business, our people and the firm. If we look 10 or 20 years down the road, we are not the best owner, because we cannot put as much into the local consumer franchise as some other institutions that are more focused on this side of the business. We are very happy that close to 3,000 of our colleagues ended up with DBS. That is the most important thing.
We will focus on supporting clients across the region in wealth management and institutional banking.
Photo: Tien Yu-hua, Taipei Times
Citi’s pivot to wealth management and institutional banking is bearing results.
In the first six months of this year, the bank’s Asia institutional businesses reported revenue growth of 3 percent from the same period last year.
Citi global wealth revenues in Asia last quarter grew 4 percent from three months earlier. In wealth, the bank grew new clients by 36 percent in the second quarter and added over 15,000 clients in the first half of 2023.
TT: How would Citi differentiate itself from other local and foreign banks in Taiwan?
Babej: Citi has been in Taiwan for 60 years and in Asia for 120 years. We have the deepest understanding of the markets where we operate and an exceptional network of local talent.
Our strategy is simple — to leverage our core strength, a global network in 95 markets that supports a Taiwan client base of 800 international enterprises, 1,600 small and medium enterprises, and 100 top domestic enterprises and financial institutions. And equally important, our strategy is all about the client and the long term. The clients we serve care about their shareholders, their employees and the future of their companies — they want a true partner for a bank.
Since 2010, Citi has raised over US$13 billion in capital markets for Taiwan corporates and has local assets under custody of US$466 billion as of April, ranking first with 28 percent market share.
TT: What is Taiwan’s role in Citi’s regional development?
Babej: Taiwan is an important global market — it manufactures 60 percent of the world’s semiconductors and is leading in many other dynamic industries. This market has a strong future, and we are committed to supporting clients here.
TT: How do you see geopolitical tensions involving Taiwan?
Babej: We have been in Asia for more than a century and are accustomed to working through geopolitics. Many of these issues are new — but also old. Helping clients navigate through issues — be they macro, economic or geopolitical — is core to Citi’s value proposition, which is particularly important in a challenging environment. Our focus is enabling clients to grow and keeping their business resilient through any geopolitical backdrop.
TT: What are your views about climate change and its impact on businesses?
Babej: Tackling climate change is a top priority for Citi. This is reflected in our commitment to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, including in our own operations by 2030.
As part of this commitment, we set 2030 targets for emission reductions in our lending portfolio for six sectors: energy, power, auto manufacturing, commercial real estate, thermal coal and steel.
From a broader sustainable financing perspective, Citi also supports a range of activities from renewable energy and clean technology to healthcare and affordable housing. This is reflected in our US$1 trillion sustainable finance goal, including US$348 billion billion in sustainable finance activity globally from 2020 to 2022.
TT: Will Citi consider rebranding in Asia because of the strategic refresh?
Babej: Citi is a global bank by nature, and our global brand transcends products. We are investing in our wealth and consumer hubs, Hong Kong and Singapore, but Citi’s brand across Asia extends across all businesses. Fundamentally, when clients think about Citi, they think about our global network. This includes a history of helping institutional clients grow across geographies. As clients grow, our network and brand will continue to grow with them.
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