ABOUT 200 to 250 jobs are set to be shed from the Singapore unit of United States banking behemoth Citigroup, a source has told The Straits Times, as part of the worldwide loss of 52,000 jobs announced on Monday.
A handful of staff, mainly relationship managers, have been notified that they are being let go, other sources say.
Given the woes of the US parent Citigroup, there has also been talk that Citi Singapore is starting to tighten credit. The US banking giant is a major player here in credit cards, car loans and other forms of secured and unsecured credit. Any major tightening of this sort of credit would have widespread implications for consumers and businesses here.
But when contacted yesterday, Citi Singapore said that it does not comment on market speculation.
In terms of job losses, The Straits Times has learnt of only a handful of staff, mainly relationship managers at the Asia Pacific unit of Citi Global Wealth Management, who have been officially notified that they have been let go. People familiar with the matter have confirmed that the bank - which had earlier said that the cuts would be 'modest' - has started notifying affected staff here.
Affected staff at Citi's Global Wealth Management unit here were informed on Wednesday and yesterday. Staff there who had not been told by last night should be safe for now, sources say. However, sources also say not all Citi Singapore staff earmarked for retrenchment have been notified.
And not all will be told to leave immediately. 'It will not be a situation where they will be told to pack up immediately and have to leave unceremoniously,' said another source.
Over 9,000 people work for Citi Singapore, which remains one of the largest employers in the finance sector. If the 200 to 250 layoffs at Citi Singapore proves to be correct, that is just 3 per cent of its total headcount here.
The Straits Times understands the bank has kept the Manpower Ministry, the Monetary Authority of Singapore and relevant staff union bodies in the loop over its plans to cut jobs.
