Bloomberg reports that the profit included a $2.9bn writedown on the Smith Barney brokerage.
Chief Executive Officer Vikram Pandit, 55, is cutting jobs and shedding unwanted assets, including a 49% stake in Smith Barney, as he seeks to return capital to shareholders and comply with new regulations on buffers against losses. Revenue from fixed-income trading surged 63 percent excluding accounting adjustments after tumbling last year during the European sovereign-debt crisis.
Pandit said: 'Our core businesses showed momentum during the quarter as we increased lending and generated higher operating revenues. These earnings highlight the strength of Citicorp and its diversification by product and region. For the third straight quarter, we had positive operating leverage in each of our three core businesses. Citigroup in total also had positive operating leverage as Citi Holdings had a smaller impact on our overall results.
'Last month’s price agreement on MSSB has given us more certainty on our exit from that business and added to the reduction of Citi Holdings, which is now only 9% of our balance sheet. We generated additional capital during the quarter, and our Tier 1 Common Ratio was estimated at 8.6% on a Basel III basis at the end of the period. We are managing risk very carefully given global economic conditions so we can continue to grow our businesses safely and soundly'.
Citigroup Beats Estimates on Tax Benefit, Fixed-Income Trading
The Alchemists: Three Central Bankers and a World on Fire
Hubris: How HBOS Wrecked the Best Bank in Britain
