Citigroup NYSE: C executives used the company’s 2026 Investor Day to outline a multi-year plan for higher returns, continued business investment and additional capital returns, with Chair and CEO Jane Fraser saying the bank has “rebuilt the engine” after several years of restructuring.
Fraser said Citi is on track to achieve its 2026 return on tangible common equity, or ROTCE, target of 10% to 11%. She said the bank has set a near-term ROTCE target of 11% to 13% for 2027 and 2028, with an expectation to move toward the higher end of that range in 2028. Over the medium term, Fraser said Citi sees “a clear path” to 14% to 15% returns.
“That is not a destination. That is a way point,” Fraser said of the 2026 target. She said the bank’s strategy remains centered on five core businesses: Services, Markets, Banking, Wealth and U.S. Consumer Cards.
Citi Lays Out Return Targets and Buyback Plan
Chief Financial Officer Gonzalo Luchetti said Citi expects to deliver its 10% to 11% ROTCE target in 2026, excluding notable items. He said the company expects net interest income excluding Markets to grow 5% to 6% year over year and expects fee growth in Services, Banking and Wealth. Citi also expects its efficiency ratio to be around 60% in 2026.
For 2027 and 2028, Luchetti said Citi’s near-term return improvement will be driven by three main factors: revenue growth from client activity, efficiency gains that create room for reinvestment, and capital productivity, including the use of deferred tax assets as U.S. earnings improve.
Luchetti also announced a new $30 billion share repurchase program. He said the move reflects Citi’s earnings power and confidence in the trajectory of its businesses. He noted that Citi had returned more than $40 billion of capital to shareholders since 2022, including more than $17 billion in 2025.
Business Leaders Detail Growth Plans
Head of Services Shahmir Khaliq said Citi’s Services business delivered record revenue of $22.6 billion, with annual growth of 12% since 2022, and a 2025 ROTCE of 24.6%. He described the unit as a “through-the-cycle business” and said Citi processes $6 trillion in payments daily across 180 countries, safeguards $31 trillion in assets under custody and administration, and manages nearly $1 trillion in deposits.
Khaliq said Services is focused on growing institutional clients, commercial banking clients, asset managers and high-growth verticals such as e-commerce and ETFs. He also said Citi is building digital asset capabilities, including Citi Token Services, which supports tokenized deposits in five global locations, and said the bank remains open-minded about stablecoins as client demand evolves.
Head of Markets Andy Morton said Citi’s Markets business reached an 11.6% ROTCE in 2025, ahead of its prior 10% to 13% target. He said Citi remains the No. 2 fixed-income player and sees opportunity to expand in equities, where he said Citi has a 5% market share. Morton said equities revenue rose 40% year over year in the first quarter, and prime balances more than doubled from $200 billion in 2022 to $450 billion in 2025.
Morton said the Markets business has room to grow returns to 13% or more over the medium term, supported by growth in equities, financing and capital discipline.
Head of Banking and Executive Vice Chair Viswas Raghavan said Citi’s Banking revenue reached $6.4 billion in 2025, a 10% compound annual growth rate since 2022. He said Citi’s banking franchise enabled $39 billion of revenue across the firm last year, in addition to $6 billion in reported Banking revenue.
Raghavan said Citi is targeting greater than 6% investment banking share overall, in North America and with financial sponsors. He said the bank has hired more than 60 managing directors across Banking since the start of 2025 and is targeting a roughly 15% increase in managing director headcount.
Wealth and Cards Remain Key Growth Areas
Head of Wealth Andy Sieg said Citi Wealth has $1.3 trillion in total client balances and a $5 trillion opportunity in investable assets held by existing clients outside the firm. He said the business has generated nearly $90 billion of net new investment assets over two years, representing an 8% organic growth rate on investment balances.
Sieg said Citi Wealth has improved from negative ROTCE in 2023 to nearly 11% in the first quarter of 2026. He said the business is targeting 15% to 20% ROTCE in the near term and more than 20% in the medium term. Citi plans to invest in private bankers, Citigold advisors, U.S. branches and AI-powered tools, including Citi Sky, which Sieg said will begin rolling out to U.S. Citigold clients this summer.
Head of U.S. Consumer Cards Pam Habner said Citi is the No. 3 U.S. card issuer, with 14% of loans and more than 70 million customers. She said the business generated $626 billion in total spend last year, revenue of $18.3 billion and a 22% ROTCE.
Habner said Citi is shifting further toward general-purpose cards, which now represent 92% of spend and 82% of loans, while reducing exposure to private-label programs. She said Citi has exited 12 private-label programs and expanded partnerships including American Airlines and Costco.
Transformation, AI and Culture
Fraser said Citi is at or nearly at its target state in 90% of transformation programs, with remaining work focused mainly on governance of data for regulatory reporting. She said transformation costs and stranded costs will decline as work is completed, freeing capacity for investment.
Executives repeatedly highlighted AI as a growth and efficiency tool. Fraser said Citi deployed core AI tools to more than 180,000 colleagues in 85 countries last year. Khaliq said Services has more than 50 AI use cases, while Habner said AI is being used across risk, controls, customer service, technology and marketing in Cards.
During the Q&A session, Wells Fargo Securities analyst Mike Mayo asked about changes to Citi’s culture. Fraser said the bank now operates with clearer accountability, enterprise-wide standards and monthly operating reviews. Raghavan said Banking is focused on a “serial winning mindset,” while Habner described the Cards business as being in “Go mode.”
In closing remarks, Fraser said Citi has moved beyond the restructuring phase and is focused on competing more aggressively. “We’ve put Citi back in the game,” she said. “We intend to stay there. We intend to win it.”
About Citigroup NYSE: C
Citigroup Inc is a global financial services company headquartered in New York City with roots tracing back to the City Bank of New York, founded in 1812. The modern Citigroup was created through the 1998 merger of Citicorp and Travelers Group and has since operated as a diversified bank holding company that provides a broad range of banking and financial products and services to consumers, corporations, governments and institutions worldwide.
Citi's principal businesses include retail and commercial banking, credit card and consumer lending products, wealth management and private banking, and a full suite of institutional services.
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