Citi To Cut 3,500 Tech Jobs In China In Global Restructuring Spree

Citigroup C is looking to downsize 3,500 technology positions in China’s Citi Solution Centers in Shanghai and Dalian.

The company will likely complete the workforce reduction by the start of the fourth quarter of 2025, CNBC reported on Thursday, citing a bank statement.

The downsizing mainly affected the information technology services unit and operational services for Citi’s global business.

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Citigroup plans to migrate some roles to Citi’s technology centers elsewhere.

Citigroup will have around 2,000 staff in China after the tech job cuts, including a few hundred at the tech unit, Reuters reported on Thursday, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter.

Citigroup had shared plans in May to cut close to 200 information technology contractor roles in China.

Citigroup shared internal plans in March to dramatically reduce reliance on information technology contractors and hire thousands of IT employees, following regulatory penalties over data governance and inadequate controls.

The bank has scaled back in the United States, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Poland as part of its workforce reduction drive under the global restructuring plan.

In January 2024, Citigroup shared plans to eliminate 20,000 jobs as part of a restructuring to save $2.5 billion. The restructuring announcement followed a challenging quarter for Citigroup, particularly in its fixed-income trading sector.

The restructuring and job cuts will likely reduce Citigroup’s overall headcount by 60,000, bringing it down to 180,000 by the end of 2026. This includes the departure of 40,000 employees following the IPO of its consumer banking businesses in Mexico.

The global macroeconomic uncertainty and the Trump administration’s tariff policies prompted banks to cut costs.

Meng Shen of Beijing’s Chanson & Co told CNBC he expects foreign banks, including Citi, to continue scaling back business in China as the country’s soft growth prospects have affected banking business opportunities.

Shen said Beijing’s tightened regulatory oversight of the financial services industry will likely create additional uncertainty for Western banks.

Citi’s Luet, however, reaffirmed its plans to CNBC to establish wholly owned securities and futures companies in China.

Citigroup had reported first-quarter fiscal 2025 revenue growth of 3% to $21.6 billion, beating the analyst consensus of $21.29 billion. The firm reported earnings per share of $1.96, increased from $1.58 a year ago, beating the consensus of $1.84.

Price Action: C stock closed lower by 0.17% at $76.40 on Wednesday.

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