Citi (NYSE: C) today announced that it has reached an agreement
with the U.S. Treasury, the Federal Reserve Board, and the Federal
Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) on a series of steps to strengthen
Citi's capital ratios, reduce risk, and increase liquidity, as described
below:
CAPITAL
- The U.S. Treasury will invest $20 billion in Citi preferred
stock under the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP).
- Citi will issue an incremental $7 billion in preferred stock
to the U.S. Treasury and the FDIC as payment for a government
guarantee on $306 billion of securities, loans, and commitments
backed by residential and commercial real estate and other assets.
- As a result of the asset guarantee, the $306 billion portfolio
will have a new risk weighting of 20%, thus freeing up an additional
$16 billion of capital to the company.
- Citi will issue warrants to the U.S. Treasury and the FDIC
for approximately 254 million shares of the company's common stock
at a strike price of $10.61.
- Citi also has agreed not to pay a quarterly common stock dividend
exceeding $0.01 (one cent) per share for three years effective
on the next quarterly common stock dividend payment.
The program significantly strengthens Citi's key capital ratios
by generating approximately $40 billion of capital benefits as follows:
- $20 billion from the TARP investment.
- $3.5 billion, the portion of the $7 billion of preferred stock
fee recognized for capital purposes.
- $16 billion of capital benefits resulting from the asset guarantee.
Citi's Tier 1 capital ratio for the third quarter ended September
30, 2008, on a pro forma basis, for the October TARP capital injection
and the new capital generated by today's announcement, subject to
Federal Reserve Board approval, is expected to be approximately
14.8% and its TCE/RWMA ratio would be approximately 9.3%.
RISK REDUCTION
Under the guarantee, Citi will assume any losses on the portfolio
up to $29 billion on a pre-tax basis, in addition to Citi's existing
reserves; the government entities will assume 90% of any losses
above that level and Citi will assume the balance. Citi will retain
these assets on its balance sheet and realize the associated cash
flow.
LIQUIDITY
In addition to its extensive access to existing liquidity sources,
Citi has been provided expanded access to both the Federal Reserve's
Primary Dealer Credit Facility and the discount window, resulting
in strong additional liquidity resources should they be needed.
Citi also has access to the yet-unused Federal Reserve's Commercial
Paper Funding Facility and intends to issue debt under the FDIC's
Temporary Liquidity Guarantee Program.
The agreement also provides that an executive compensation plan,
including
bonuses, that rewards long-term performance and profitability, with
appropriate
limitations, must be submitted to, and approved by, the U.S. government.
"This weekend, the U.S. government and Citi worked together
in an unprecedented way to address market confidence and the recent
decline in Citi's stock price," said Vikram S. Pandit, Chief
Executive Officer. "We reached an agreement based on an innovative
market solution to further strengthen our capital ratios, reduce
risk, and increase liquidity. We appreciate the tremendous effort
by the government to assure market stability."
"We are committed to streamlining our business and providing
outstanding banking services to our clients around the world. We
will continue to focus on opportunities and alternatives to further
enhance the company's overall position and value," Mr. Pandit
concluded.
The transaction has been unanimously approved by the Citi Board
of Directors.
For more details, please see the term sheet for the transaction
at www.citigroup.com/citi/fin/index.htm
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