Citigroup to cut managing directors and senior staff in March after January layoffs

Citigroup is preparing a fresh round of job cuts in March that is expected to hit managing directors and other senior employees, extending a wave of workforce reductions under chief executive Jane Fraser’s restructuring drive.

The layoffs are likely to be announced after annual bonuses are paid, according to people familiar with the matter cited by Reuters. The sources did not disclose the scale or geographic spread of the planned cuts, which have not been previously reported.

The move follows Citi’s decision to eliminate about 1,000 roles in January. That round of reductions also affected senior employees, one of the sources told Reuters, signalling a sustained focus on thinning management ranks.

The March layoffs are expected to primarily impact managing directors and senior staff across multiple divisions. Some senior managers have already been reassigned internally in an effort to retain them ahead of the cuts, Reuters reported.

Citigroup has made clear that workforce reductions will continue into 2026. In a statement earlier this month, the bank said it was adjusting staffing levels to reflect business needs, efficiency gains from technology, and progress on its long-running transformation programme.

“These changes reflect adjustments we’re making to ensure our staffing levels, locations and expertise align with current business needs,” the bank said, adding that its transformation effort was nearing its target state.

The scale of the restructuring has been significant. Chief financial officer Mark Mason said during the bank’s earnings call on 14 January that Citi’s global workforce had fallen to 226,000 employees by the end of last year, down from about 240,000 in 2022. Mason also told analysts that the bank incurred roughly $800 million in severance-related expenses last year.

The job cuts form part of Fraser’s broader turnaround strategy, which has focused on cutting costs, simplifying the organisation, addressing regulatory shortcomings and lifting returns to better match US banking peers. Since taking over as chief executive in 2021, Fraser has overseen multiple reorganisations, the removal of management layers and the exit from several international consumer banking businesses.

In November, Citi announced another internal reorganisation, continuing a multi-year effort to streamline reporting lines and sharpen accountability. In contrast to earlier rounds of layoffs in 2023 and 2024, which were publicly announced, the latest reductions have been more discreet, Reuters noted.

The restructuring comes as regulatory pressure on the bank has begun to ease. The US Federal Reserve has closed enforcement actions related to weaknesses in Citi’s trading risk management, while the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency recently rolled back a 2024 amendment to a consent order first imposed in 2020.

With expenses still under scrutiny and profitability lagging rivals, further workforce reductions remain on the table. Executives have signalled that Citi will continue to reassess its cost base as Fraser’s overhaul enters its later stages.