Citibank Europe profits and revenues slide

Citibank Europe, which is headquartered in Ireland, saw profits and revenues decline last year due to what it described as a challenging business environment.

Newly filed accounts show the bank reported a pre-tax profit of $720 million (€631 million) in 2015 versus $878 million a year earlier on operating income that fell from $1.49 million to $1.31 billion.

Total assets

The company’s total assets increased year-on-year to $26.6 billion versus $25.5 billion in 2014.

The Central Bank-regulated entity, which is part of the wide Citi group, focuses on providing transaction services to corporate clients.

The bank, which in February appointed Zdenek Turek as its new chief executive in place of Aidan Brady, merged with sister company Citibank International Limited at the start of the year. The move came after Citi decided that shifting the head office of its European retail banking operations to Dublin from London would result in lower costs and capital requirements.

The merger involved the transfer of $31.5 billion assets and of $27.6 billion in liabilities at book value.

Citi and its predecessors have had a presence in Ireland since 1965. It is now reportedly the largest employer in the IFSC with about 2,500 staff.

The latest accounts show Citibank Europe's consumer-focused operation in the Czech Republic was sold in the first quarter of 2016 as part of Citigroup's strategy to exit this business in 11 markets.