Citigroup Inc. is reportedly closing its distressed-debt business as the latest part of Chief Executive Jane Fraser’s overhaul of the major Wall Street bank.
The move, reported Wednesday by Bloomberg and CNBC, follows Citi’s announcement last week that it will shutter its municipal-bond group by the end of March. The bank’s distressed-debt desk currently employs about 40 people, according to CNBC, while Bloomberg reported that its closing is expected to impact roughly 20 positions.
A spokesperson for Citi declined to comment on the reports.
The decision is the latest part of an organizational restructuring announced by Citi
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in September that seeks to cut costs, eliminate management layers and improve its financial performance. The initiative, known internally as “Project Bora Bora,” could involve job cuts of at least 10% across several of the 240,000-employee bank’s major businesses, CNBC reported last month.
The restructuring comes as Fraser seeks to boost investor confidence in the third-largest U.S. bank by assets amid missed targets and returns that have lagged behind its Wall Street peers in recent years.
Citi shares were up 0.3% in after-hours trading, after ending Wednesday’s session down 1.7%. The bank’s stock price is up 10.7% year to date.