Citi

The consumer and corporate brand of Citigroup, America’s third largest bank and the one that operates in the most countries.
8 figures on Citi, drawn from 2 Modern MBA case studies.
The figures
US dollars3
| Against its own chart | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue of the big bank credit card divisions and the payment networks, 2024, in billions | $19B | 7th of 9 · top $61B | How credit card companies actually make money |
| Swipe fees against reward costs and partner payments, 2023, in billions · Swipe fees | $10B | 4th of 5 · top $33B | How credit card companies actually make money |
| Swipe fees against reward costs and partner payments, 2023, in billions · Rewards & partner payments | −$11B | 3rd of 5 · worst −$25B | How credit card companies actually make money |
Percentages4
| Against its own chart | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Operating margin of the leading data-driven Fortune 500 companies, 2013 against 2023 · 2013 | 26% | 4th of 12 · top 40% | Why AI is just big data again |
| Operating margin of the leading data-driven Fortune 500 companies, 2013 against 2023 · 2023 | 25% | 3rd of 12 · top 36% | Why AI is just big data again |
| Operating margin of the big banks’ credit card divisions · 2009 | 8% | 2nd of 4 · top 13% | How credit card companies actually make money |
| Operating margin of the big banks’ credit card divisions · 2008 | 7% | 3rd of 4 · top 14% | How credit card companies actually make money |
Counts1
| Against its own chart | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Credit cards in circulation by issuing bank, 2024, in millions | 79M | 3rd of 6 · top 154M | How credit card companies actually make money |
Case studies covering Citi
Case study — FinanceHow credit card companies actually make moneyThe swipe fee is not the business. The interest is — and the networks taking the blame were founded by the banks collecting it.15 min read
Case study — TechnologyWhy AI is just big data againBig data was sold for a decade and produced nothing. The same players are running the identical playbook with AI.15 min readNew episodes
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