$hitibank CEO: After the recession, a kinder, poorer America

[marmar]

Whew. Well thank goodness Citibank had no role in the nation's over-dependence on credit. Right Mr. Band..., I mean Pandit?



Citigroup’s Pandit Sees Lower Growth Rate for Economy (Update1)
By Josh Fineman


June 15 (Bloomberg) -- Citigroup Inc. Chief Executive Officer Vikram Pandit said he expects a lower growth rate for the U.S. economy as it goes through an “adjustment” period.

“There is a clear trade-off between saving more and stimulating the economy in the short term to achieve stability,” Pandit, 52, said in prepared remarks for a keynote address today at the Detroit Economic Club’s National Summit.

Citigroup, the recipient of $45 billion in government funds, has itself to blame for its financial woes, Pandit said. It racked up more than $100 billion of credit losses and writedowns during a credit contraction that began in 2007. The bank is selling businesses and reducing headcount.

“We too were very credit-dependent and relied too greatly on non-core, or wholesale funding sources, including securitization and other aspects of the shadow banking system,” Pandit said. “And we suffered from imbalances in the economy.”

The deleveraging of the financial system means reduced credit creation, and less available financing and working capital, Pandit said. This will also lead to lower gross domestic product growth. ............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aaNQcAWUoeIg