Citigroup Inc.'s (C: Quote) trading and investment-banking division plans to cut 150 jobs and reduce bonuses by up to10 percent, according to media reports on Thursday.
The job cuts will impact businesses, including equities trading and underwriting. While bonuses for this year will reduce across the securities and banking division, top performers at the unit are likely to be spared.
The securities and banking division employs about 17,000 people. Citigroup cut 1,200 jobs in its investment banking division in the fourth quarter of 2011 and also cut an additional 350 investment banking jobs in the first half of 2012.
Citigroup has been urged by some of its shareholders to seek separation of its business, prompted by fears of inherent business risks and poor stock performance. The urging to separate the company comes just months after former CEO Sandy Weill said he thinks the bank's current business model has failed and that it should ideally separate.
In October, Vikram Pandit resigned as CEO of Citigroup after a span of five years and was replaced by Michael Corbat. Though Pandit was instrumental in guiding the company through the 2008 financial crisis, Citigroup's shares lost about 90 percent of its value during this period.
Under Pandit, Citigroup abandoned its acquisition-fueled growth strategy that catapulted the bank into a financial giant and trimmed itself by divesting non-core businesses and costs cutting measures. Citigroup also took $45 billion in bailout funds to stay afloat during the crisis period.
C closed Thursday's trading at $35.21, up $0.14 or 0.40 percent on a volume of 31.68 million shares. In after-hours, the stock declined $0.16 or 0.45 percent to $35.05.
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by RTT Staff Writer
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