Citigroup, Inc (NYSE: C) Has No Plans to Raise Capital in China

Citigroup, Inc (NYSE: C) said on Wednesday that the company has no plans to raise capital by seeking a listing on the to-be-launched international board in Shanghai because the company believes it can finance expansion in China without new capital.

The New York-based ban currently has 29 branches in China and plans to add an additional 10 branches in the country by the end of the year, said Citibank China chairman Andrew Au, to reporters at a briefing in Shanghai.

Citigroup Asia Pacific Chief Executive Stephen Bird commented, “If you look at Citi Asia over the last three years, we have generated US$45 billion in revenues and US$15 billion in earnings. In the context of that tremendous growing top-line profitability, we have the ability to be investing today at a pace that exceeds the pace any time in our history.”

“So we actually don’t need to raise any capital from listing here in Shanghai,” Bird said at the briefing. “We want to continue to own all of it because we feel a great confidence in its financial future, so we don’t have plans and we don’t have a need to raise capital in order to invest.”

Although Citigroup, Inc (NYSE: C) has no plans to raise capital in China, many other foreign banks have expressed interest in being placed on China’s planned international board hoping to tap liquidity in the country. China’s government has not setup an exact time table for the new marketplace, but many financial giants, including HSBC, have expressed interest in raising capital through the board to finance expansion in China.

Citigroup, Inc (NYSE: C) has 710 branches in 18 different Asian companies with a total of 31 million customer accounts in China. The company has 29 branches and has minority stakes in Shanghai Pudong Development Bank Co. and Guangdong Development Bank Co. in the southern city of Guangzhou.

Citigroup Inc. (Citigroup) is a global diversified financial services holding company. The Company provides consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a range of financial products and services. As of December 31, 2009, Citigroup had approximately 200 million customer accounts and did business in more than 140 countries. Citigroup operates through two primary business segments: Citicorp, consisting of its Regional Consumer Banking (RCB) businesses and Institutional Clients Group (ICG), and Citi Holdings, consisting of its Brokerage and Asset Management (BAM), Local Consumer Lending (LCL), and Special Asset Pool (SAP). In April 2010, Barclays PLC acquired Italian credit card business of Citibank International Bank plc. In May 2010, the Company announced the creation of a new Collateral Management Services unit within its Securities and Fund Services business.

Shares of Citigroup, Inc (NYSE: C) traded down 1.48% on Monday hitting $3.65 during mid-day trading.