Technological Advancement Results in 5,000 Jobs Cut at CitiBank

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Banking News

Citi’s Tech Advancement Leads to 5,000 Job Cuts

Citigroup is cutting 5,000 jobs and expecting higher expenses due to severance costs and its technology transformation initiative. The bank plans to reduce headcount as it implements automation and retires outdated technology platforms. Standardizing risk platforms will reduce the necessary headcount too. Citi joins other US banks in announcing significant job cuts amid regulatory concerns and a challenging economic environment.

Mark Mason, Citi CFO, said

MUFG’s Deception Costs U.S. Bank $15M

U.S. Bank has agreed to pay $15 million to settle allegations that its subsidiary, MUFG Union Bank, deceived customers about certain account fees. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) found that MUFG Union misled customers about fee discounts and waivers, including those related to its Private Bank Program and safe deposit box rentals. The bank also failed to waive monthly fees on accounts for customers with mortgages, despite promising to do so. The incidents occurred before U.S. Bank acquired MUFG Union, and the bank is reimbursing affected customers.

Credit Union News

Financial Industry Opposes Interchange Bill

CUNA and various financial industry organizations expressed strong opposition to the interchange bill (H.R. 3881) introduced by Reps. Lance Gooden and Zoe Lofgren. They argue that the legislation would harm consumers, benefit big retailers, restrict card options, limit rewards programs, and give excessive control to the Federal Reserve Board. The organizations emphasized the existing competitiveness of the credit card marketplace and the potential negative consequences for credit unions and community banks.

The letter reads:

Unified Rulemaking Agenda Released

Federal regulatory agencies, including the NCUA and CFPB, have released the Unified Rulemaking Agenda, outlining upcoming actions and proposals. The CFPB's agenda includes a final rule on credit card late fees, which has drawn concerns from CUNA. The NCUA's agenda includes final rules on overdraft policy, subordinated debt, and the Bank Secrecy Act, among other proposals and pre-rule activities.

Financial Services & Blockchain

No More Screen Scraping at Jack Henry

Jack Henry, a banking technology provider, is close to eliminating inbound screen scraping for over 700 banks and credit unions using its digital banking platform. The company has been phasing out the practice over the past five years and expects to complete the effort by the end of the summer. Screen scraping, accessing bank account information through third-party credentials, has long been recognized as a security, privacy, and user experience concern. Jack Henry has been replacing screen scraping with application programming interfaces (APIs) through partnerships with data exchange platforms such as Finicity, Akoya, and Plaid. The transition to APIs is seen as a more secure and standardized way of connecting consumers' accounts to financial apps.

The senior director of corporate strategy at Jack Henry, Lee Wetherington, said

Unbanked Can Access Digital Payments

BNY Mellon and fintech MoCaFi have partnered to provide payment options and banking services to unbanked and underbanked Americans. Through BNY Mellon's Vaia platform, governments and corporate clients can distribute digital payments to unbanked individuals, enabling real-time access to funds and bringing more people into the financial system. The partnership aims to address disparities in access to financial services, particularly among communities of color. MoCaFi has previously partnered with Wells Fargo and raised significant funding to support underserved communities.