Citi CFO Mark Mason highlighted the bank’s 8% growth and disciplined expense management while emphasizing strategic investments in AI to enhance employee productivity, customer service, and software development. He stressed that AI is central to Citi’s operational transformation and future competitiveness in the financial industry.
Citi CFO Mark Mason highlighted the company’s strong topline momentum, reporting an 8% growth across all segments. Alongside this growth, Citi maintained disciplined expense management, with expenses rising only about 2% for the quarter and actually down 1% for the first half of the year. This careful expense control was balanced with strategic investments, particularly in technology, transformation initiatives, and artificial intelligence (AI) tools.
Mason explained that Citi has adopted a multi-pronged approach to integrating AI into its operations. The first focus is empowering employees—over 140,000 in total—with AI tools that assist in their daily tasks. These tools help staff efficiently handle large documents, summarize content, and develop presentation talking points, thereby enhancing productivity and streamlining workflows.
The second area of AI application is in customer service operations, including service centers and call centers. AI tools are used to improve client interactions and support, whether for card customers or clients involved in treasury and trade solutions. This use of AI helps Citi deliver better, faster service and enhances the overall customer experience.
The third focus involves the use of agentic AI to support software development. AI assists developers by writing and checking code, which increases the efficiency and accuracy of Citi’s technology development processes. This application of AI is part of a broader effort to modernize and optimize the bank’s operational capabilities.
Overall, Mason emphasized that these AI investments are crucial for transforming Citi’s operations. The bank views AI as a key driver of future efficiency and competitiveness, and it plans to continue investing in these technologies to maintain its leadership position in the financial industry.