Baltimore-based CitiFinancial plans to reorganize, close 330 U.S. branches

[Ed Barrow]

Source: Baltimore Sun

Baltimore-based CitiFinancial, the consumer lending arm of financial giant Citigroup Inc., said Tuesday that it plans to close 330 branches across the U.S., including six in Maryland, as it reorganizes its business and continues to look for a buyer.

The move will result in 500 to 600 job cuts, though it's not known how many employees will be affected in Maryland, according to CitiFinancial.

Citigroup has been trying to sell CitiFinancial and other distressed assets since last year amid the financial crisis. But finding interested buyers has been tough with CitiFinancial generating a large percentage of Citigroup's loan losses, said Shannon Stemm, a financial services analyst at Edward Jones & Co. in St. Louis.

"In this case, they're trying to cut costs and streamline their business to make it more attractive for a sale," Stemm said.



Read more: http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/bs-bz-citifinancial-branch-layoffs-20100601,0,2255946.story