Citigroup is cutting 20,000 employees over multiple years, representing 10% of its total workforce. The bank has been restructuring under CEO Jane Fraser since 2023, and the automation overhaul is the most ambitious transformation in Citi's recent history.
Citi's 20,000-person reduction is being executed methodically, with AI and automation replacing functions across operations, compliance, and middle office. The bank is essentially rebuilding its operating model from the ground up, and the workers who supported the old model are being phased out.
Between Citigroup (20K) and HSBC (20K), two of the world's largest banks are eliminating 40,000 positions specifically citing AI as the driver. This is not a cyclical downturn; it is a structural transformation of how global banking operates.