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Korea Herald
4 days ago
- Business
- Korea Herald
Citi eyes Korea's mid-market growth as key global hub
From K-beauty to tech and manufacturing, Citi supports Korean exporters with cross-border financing Tasnim Ghiawadwala, global head of commercial banking at Citi, reaffirmed the bank's long-term commitment to Korea, describing the country as a hub of innovative mid-sized companies eager to capture global market share. From cosmetics brands breaking into European retail chains to industrial suppliers expanding alongside global clients, she said Korea's export-oriented companies offer fertile ground for the bank's cross-border financing and advisory services. Making her first visit to Korea since assuming her role in 2021, Ghiawadwala spent three days meeting key commercial banking clients and reaffirmed Citi's long-term commitment to the Korean market. 'As Citi continues to grow its commercial banking client base worldwide, Korea remains a strategically important market within its global franchise,' Ghiawadwala said in an exclusive interview with The Korea Herald while visiting Seoul starting Tuesday. She shared her views on Citi's global strategy, how Citi Commercial Bank (CCB) supports client growth across markets and why Korea is integral to the bank's mid-market ambitions. Q. How important is the Korea market to CCB, and what does Citi hope to achieve here? Korea is an incredibly important market for CCB. We see Korea as one of the more exciting and active markets in Asia with innovative mid-sized companies disrupting long-established industries globally or reshaping the state of the global supply chain. Take beauty and skincare as an example. Since COVID-19, there's been an explosion of demand for Korean beauty and skincare brands not only at home but abroad as well – in the UK, Boots, a well-known pharmaceutical and beauty store, has started carrying select Korean beauty brands. CCB Korea provides banking services to the full K-beauty ecosystem, including major cosmetic ODMs, K-beauty brands and online retailers to aid in their global expansion. For example, a leading Korean skincare manufacturer seeking to set up overseas manufacturing facilities needs capital – that's where we can step up and support not just in one country but across the globe, including China and the US. A Korean online retailer selling abroad in the US and select European and Middle Eastern markets needs support with FX hedging and payments – again, CCB has provided those essential products and services to help grow sales. In recent years, Citi has supported Korean companies in strategic cross-border initiatives and maintained a strong relationship with K-SURE, aiding outbound financing and export capacity building. Q. What are some emerging industries or sectors in Korea where CCB sees strong growth potential, and how is Citi helping clients tap into those opportunities? In Korea, Citi Commercial Bank is structured by industry verticals, with teams of bankers specializing in specific industries. This allows us to deliver tailored financial solutions leveraging Citi's global capabilities across financing, global cash management, FX or cross-border expansion. Two sectors with strong momentum are digital technology & communication and industrials. These include online travel agencies, K-beauty ecosystem, cloud services, platform businesses, and mid-sized Korean suppliers across auto-parts, semiconductors, chemicals, and consumer electronics – many critical partners in the value chains of Korea's leading corporates. As these companies grow globally and expand production alongside their clients, Citi provides working capital loans and global cash management. For example, we support Korean suppliers entering new markets with solutions to manage liquidity, optimize FX flows, and navigate regulatory environments. Q. Could you tell us more about Citi Commercial Bank – the types of clients you serve, the financial solutions you provide, and where CCB operates globally? Citi Commercial Bank is an important part of Citi's strategy and a key growth driver. We have identified a significant opportunity to expand Citi's value proposition to mid-sized corporates globally. Our aim is to deliver all products and solutions available at Citi — payments, liquidity management, trade finance, working capital, hedging and advisory services — to mid-sized corporates throughout our global network spanning more than 90 countries. We generally define our market segment as companies with annual sales between $10 million and $3 billion. Our client base typically consists of mid-sized corporates that either already operate in multiple geographies or have plans for international expansion. As a leading global bank with an extensive network, we support these clients with diverse products across multiple countries and entities. Q. How important is the CCB business to Citi's overall franchise? How does CCB contribute to the bank's equity story? CCB is a significant contributor to our banking franchise and broader Citi. Within Banking, we work closely with the Investment Bank and Corporate Bank to provide strategic client coverage. We offer select mid-sized clients access to investment banking products and solutions, supporting them through their entire life cycle. We also advise finance and treasury teams and C-suite executives, tailoring financial strategies to their needs. This may involve leveraging products from other Citi businesses, such as treasury management, working capital and FX hedging. Many clients are privately owned, so we partner with our Wealth business to support founders and senior management with wealth management, enabling seamless management of financial and business affairs. Q. What are your key global priorities for the CCB business? Our key priorities include executing the 2022 growth strategy, aiming to double our market share in the addressable wallet to 4 percent. We've advanced initiatives such as upskilling bankers with training on market knowledge and Citi's product offerings, enhancing client-centric advisory. We launched CitiDirect Commercial Banking – a digital platform providing clients one-stop access to products and some self-service capabilities. Global banker driving Citi's mid-market push Before rejoining Citi in 2021 to lead Citi Commercial Bank, Ghiawadwala held senior leadership roles at Barclays and Citi across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, driving business expansion, innovation and key initiatives such as the UK COVID-19 government loan schemes. With over 20 years of experience in investment, corporate and commercial banking, she is recognized for her leadership in promoting workplace equality and diversity. She holds a degree from King's College London and is a Chartered Management Accountant. hnpark@
Yahoo
01-08-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Citi targets commercial clients going through global growing pains
This story was originally published on Banking Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily Banking Dive newsletter. Citi's commercial bank is jumping on chances to serve as a consolidator of banking services for clients that have incrementally built a global presence. That's according to Tasnim Ghiawadwala, global head of the lender's commercial bank, who pointed to a client with $1 billion in annual sales, operating in 60 markets, that's dealing with 72 banks. That's the type of opportunity Citi aims to capitalize on, leaning on its global reach. For mid-size companies, that situation 'happens sort of organically,' she said. Early on, commercial clients aren't thinking from a global perspective. But smaller companies are taking an increasingly global posture, and as they rack up bank partners in multiple markets, it can 'carry a huge amount of cost, to maintain such a large banking group,' she said. With many companies finding themselves in that situation, 'I have no doubt about our ability to grow in this space,' Ghiawadwala said. The New York-based lender maintained its global network – the bank's 'biggest competitive advantage' – when others with global ambitions retracted following the 2007-08 financial crisis, she noted. Simplifying banking could mean assisting in some or all of the countries where clients operate or structuring their liquidity needs more efficiently, she said. 'In some instances, it makes sense for the client to use a local or regional bank for their needs and in other markets it makes more sense to use Citi instead,' she said. Serving in the consolidator role is 'an opportunity for us to help them with harmonizing their banking relationships and centralizing their financial operations to have better visibility, increased access and ultimately generate efficiencies,' she said. Citi has brought its commercial bank to several new markets over the last five years, including Western Europe, Canada and Japan. In the U.S., the commercial bank operates in 17 markets to cover top business hubs, although it works with clients across the country. Citi doesn't disclose the size of the commercial business, although Ghiawadwala said it's a 'decent part' of Citi's banking segment. Citi's banking revenues rose 18% in the second quarter, to $1.9 billion, although that also includes investment banking and corporate lending. The lender is working to draw in new mid-sized corporate clients and do more for its current roster, she said. Growing the commercial client segment is one of Citi's main priorities this year and next. When asked about the size of the opportunity envisioned, the bank pointed to Ghiawadwala's comments from 2022, when she told investors the bank is focused on an addressable opportunity of about $150 billion; the bank's share of that was about 2% in 2022, and she said the bank sought to double that share. 'Even our existing clients are growing, and so, as they grow, their banking needs are changing,' Ghiawadwala noted in a recent interview. 'There's really a lot for us to do in terms of absolutely realizing our full potential.' The lender has bankers on the ground in 90 countries, and a global relationship manager oversees a client's entire reach across various markets, she said. Commercial clients do between $10 million to $3 billion in sales annually, with the 'sweet spot' being companies already operating in a few countries that are looking for a global bank, she said. The bank counted 14,000 commercial clients in 2022; Citi declined to share a current number. The lender focuses on six 'super sectors': industrials, digital technology and communications, retail, healthcare, business and professional services, and nonbank financial institutions. Citi aims to serve clients' everyday banking needs and as a strategic partner when it comes to investments and guidance. About 90% of clients are privately held businesses, and Citi aims to tap different parts of the bank when needed, such as if clients are looking to go public, Ghiawadwala said. These mid-sized corporate customers particularly appreciate consumer-like capabilities in banking, because they're companies that don't have as much formal structure or lack big treasury or finance teams, she said. Treasury management, for example, isn't something companies tend to consider at the outset. As firms go through growing pains, 'that's where we can kind of come in and bring our large company experience,' Ghiawadwala said. Citi has sought to simplify functions for clients – thinking through the number of clicks it takes to handle a task, or what web menus look like – while providing robust capabilities that some of the world's largest companies turn to the bank for. The bank unified functions through a new platform, introduced in 2023, that provides a single digital user interface. Last month, the bank added a digital credit application capability for smaller loans and an automated self-service credit management process, which allows Citi to monitor covenance without having to reach out to remind clients for information. In the markets that have added those tools, about 20% of commercial clients are using its digital lending capabilities, the bank said. Citi is also working to digitize banker tasks, with the bank's artificial intelligence-powered assistant Stylus, to bolster productivity when it comes to generating reports and other duties. A heatmap tool, rolled out earlier this year, helps bankers identify geographic locations clients operate in, as bankers consider products that would be beneficial, Ghiawadwala said. Recommended Reading Citi vet joins Blackstone's credit unit Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
