[NEW YORK] Citigroup beat Wall Street revenue estimates across all five of its major business lines, a haul that’s helping the firm manage rising compensation costs and a plan to sell its retail unit in Mexico.
Total revenue jumped 9 per cent as the firm’s markets, banking, services, wealth and US retail divisions all set records for a third quarter, the New York-based company said in a statement on Tuesday (Oct 14). Traders in both equities and fixed-income products surpassed analysts’ projections, pulling in a total of US$5.6 billion – or 15 per cent more than a year earlier.
Expenses also climbed 9 per cent, mainly driven by costs stemming from the agreement Citigroup announced late last month to sell a stake in Banamex ahead of a public stock offer.
The firm also pointed to higher spending on compensation and benefits. Chief executive officer Jane Fraser has green-lit flashy hires from across Wall Street, including a wave of bankers recruited in the past few months to bolster dealmaking desks.
Fraser is investing across the company to make it more competitive and fix systems that have drawn regulatory penalties. The stock has outperformed almost all of the firm’s main US peers in 2025 – edged out only by Goldman Sachs Group.
“The cumulative effect of what we have done over the past years – our transformation, our refreshed strategy, our simplification – have put Citi in a materially different place in terms of our ability to compete,” Fraser said in the statement.
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Rivals Goldman Sachs Group and JPMorgan also posted investment-banking revenue that soared past analysts’ estimates for the third quarter.
Citigroup’s earnings per share amounted to US$1.86 in the quarter, roughly in line with analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg, and up 23 per cent from the same period last year.
The firm’s fixed-income traders generated US$4 billion, up from US$3.6 billion a year earlier, while those handling equities generated US$1.5 billion. Prime balances in the markets division jumped 44 per cent to a record, the company said.
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Citigroup’s investment bankers also chalked gains as the dealmaking environment improved, with fees rising 17 per cent. That’s faster than the 16 per cent increase JPMorgan posted.
The services and US retail banking units both increased revenue 7 per cent for their strongest quarter ever.
And the bank’s wealth division, a franchise that Fraser has sought for years to grow, boosted revenue about 8 per cent, driven largely by Citigold, an investment platform for affluent clients who don’t meet the firm’s private bank wealth thresholds. BLOOMBERG
