Boston, MA 06/20/2014 (wallstreetpr) – Diversified financial services provider Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) had attached significant importance when it named its corporate and investment banking head for the Asia – Pacific region. The region assumes significance to the performance of the bank since close to half of Citicorp division’s revenue comes from the region.
Appointment In Asia – Pacific
Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) has named Mark Slaughter as its corporate and investment banking head for the Asia – Pacific region. Till recently, he was the global chief operating officer for its corporate and investment banking division located in New York. His appointment was necessitated due to the vacancy caused by the exit of Farhan Faruqui last month. Faruqui left to take over the position of chief executive officer of Australia & New Zealand Bank Group Ltd.’s international banking segment.
Citigroup disclosed that Slaughter has been with the company for the significant part of the past decade and he had also worked for Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE:GS) in Europe for close to two decades.
Importance of the Region
The Asia – Pacific region assumes importance for Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) since it generated revenue of $15 billion from Asia alone in 2013. The company’s chief executive of the region Stephen Bird had indicated that the appointment emphasizes the region’s importance for its franchise of international corporate and investment banking segment. He had also expressed the confidence that Slaughter will be able to develop the division further through strong relationships that have been built with the leading companies of the region in the past.
The appointment of Slaughter has come during a time when international banks face pressure of a dwindling investment banking business in the Asia – Pacific region. According to a Bloomberg report quoting research firm Freeman & Co, income from fees from underwriting of equities and bonds besides mergers and acquisition advisory activities slipped 23% in 2013 from the year 2011.
However, Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) continues to be ranked first when it comes to underwriting of bonds denominated in the U.S. Dollars, Yen, and Euros for the region. The data of the region excludes Japan.
