Citi® Extends Industry-leading Commercial Card Global Footprint: Launches Local Currency Commercial Card Program in 50th Country

Published on Thursday, 29 July 2010 09:25 Written by TradersHuddle Staff

NEW YORK, LONDON & JOHANNESBURG-( Business Wire )-

Citigroup today announced that its Global Transaction Services business has further extended its local commercial card issuance capabilities to South Africa This is the 50^th market where Citi has launched its global card offering in recognition of ongoing client demand and the first step in Citi’s strategy to expand its innovative card offering in South Africa. The offering will soon include Citi’s turnkey prepaid card solution leveraging its experience as the largest global provider of corporate and government prepaid programs.

Citi Commercial Cards, with unsurpassed acceptance and an extensive issuing footprint, has long been considered a pre-eminent commercial cards provider to large and multi-national organizations. Nearly 500 multinational corporations use its commercial cards programs at the core of their expense management strategy, making Citi a premier cards issuer in terms of technology, innovation and transaction volume. Clients are able to centralize program administration with one provider by leveraging Citi’s innovative proprietary ECS+ platform.

“The launch of local issuance capabilities in South Africa represents a milestone for Citi,” said Hubert Jolly, Citi’s Global Head of Commercial Cards. “As our clients expand globally, Citi will continue to make the investments in technology and global expansion necessary to ensure they receive an unrivaled level of support. In fact, we plan to launch an additional five new local issuance countries during 2010”.

“The launch of local issuance capabilities in South Africa represents a milestone for Citi. South Africa is an exceptional market place — one demanding local solutions with global service standards,” said Rajesh Mehta, Head of Treasury and Trade Solutions for Europe, the Middle East & Africa, Citi, “As our clients expand globally, Citi will continue to make the investments in technology and global expansion necessary to ensure they receive an unrivaled level of support”.

Citi has identified Africa as a strategic focus for its Treasury & Trade Solutions (TTS) business and has set a goal of delivering market leading capabilities and practices locally from within the region. Citi has been present in Africa for more than 50 years and has one of the broadest networks across the continent. It is currently present in 16 countries with Non-presence coverage of another 26.

About Citi

Citi, the leading global financial services company, has approximately 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 140 countries. Through its two operating units, Citicorp and Citi Holdings, Citi provides consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, transaction services, and wealth management. Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com or www.citi.com.

About Citi Global Transaction Services

Global Transaction Services, a division of Citi’s Institutional Clients Group, offers integrated cash management, trade, and securities and fund services to multinational corporations, financial institutions and public sector organizations around the world. With a network that spans more than 100 countries, Citi's Global Transaction Services supports over 65,000 clients. As of the second quarter of 2010, it held $320 billion in liability balances and $11.3 trillion in assets under custody.

Citi^® Commercial Card Solutions:

Citi^® Corporate Card - Employee card for travel and entertainment expenses, accepted at over 30 million outlets worldwide, with 24/7 customer service.

Citi^® Purchasing Card - Designed for a wide range of day to day business expenses, Purchasing Cards allow organizations can streamline their purchasing process, and negotiate more effectively with suppliers.

Citi^® Lodged Account - Held with your designated travel management company, Lodged Accounts help organizations monitor and control their travel-related expenses.

Citi^® One Card - A versatile card solution combining Purchasing Card and Corporate Card functionality in a single card to enable better management and expense control across the organization.

Citi^® Virtual Card Accounts – With the Citi Virtual Card Account solution, organizations can now generate unique "virtual" card numbers and dynamically set spending and reconciliation controls on each virtual card based on their specific purchasing needs.

CitiLondonJean Dumas, +442079865603jean.dumas@citi.comorNew YorkNina Das, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.