Citi loses head of private banking unit

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The global head of Citigroup’s private banking arm and one of its highest-ranking female executives is leaving the firm in a potential blow to Chief Executive Jane Fraser’s plans to grow its wealth division.

Ida Liu announced her departure on LinkedIn Monday morning, but did not say where she was. Her decision follows a string of other departures by senior women at the bank.

“Great careers are defined by taking on new challenges and opportunities, and the time is right for me to leverage my global skills, leadership experience and passion for growth in bold and exciting new ways,” Liu wrote.

City A request for comment on Liu’s departure was not returned.

Lew’s departure will dilute the limited number of high-ranking female executives on the City org chart below Fraser. While not on Citi’s executive management team, Liu was among the top female leaders there, along with Tasnim Ghiawadwala, who runs Citi’s commercial bank.

Citigroup restructured itself a year ago into five major business units, all five of which are run by men. Fraser’s 18-member executive management committee includes only two female officers Fraser.

Liu’s departure follows other top female Citi executives, including T.T. Cole, who headed Citi’s global restructuring and left in May, and Citi Chief Operating Officer Karen Pitz, who departed in 2023. Cole was replaced by Tim Ryan, a former top executive at PwC who also heads Citi’s technology. Anand Selva replaced Pitz as head of Citi’s customer division.

The departure comes at a time when the City is putting renewed emphasis on its wealth division. Liu, a former Deutsche Bank investment banker, left Wall Street early in his career to become a fashion executive. She returned to the City a few years later, earning her contacts to woo wealthy clients in the worlds of fashion, media and entertainment.

The bank named the head of its North American private bank in 2019 and the head of the global division two years later.

Liu reported to Andy Sieg, who was brought in a year and a half ago to turn around the City’s struggling wealth division. Sig emphasized wealth management and moved to restructure how Citi pays its private bankers — rewarding them for bringing in client wealth rather than transactions, as private bankers are typically paid.

Sig’s changes in the department have improved results but have also been accompanied by a number of senior departures. Citi’s wealth division’s revenue more than doubled last year to more than $1 billion, its highest since the bank began breaking out the unit’s results three years ago.

Last year, “was the turning point for Asset as we sharpened our focus on investments, right-sized the spend base and improved the client experience,” Fraser told analysts on the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call, praising Sig. “That’s where we see the big upside.”