Citi's 2026 layoffs have been more frequent and widespread than we thought

Citi is cutting costs and with them, jobs. As we reported earlier this month, the bank has made three rounds of job cuts in New York so far this year, encompassing 820 people. But this appears to be just the tip of the iceberg. 

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Sources say that Citi has made additional layoffs this year, affecting its mostly middle and back office employees in places like Tampa, Florida, O'Fallon, Missouri or Florence, Kentucky. Some of those let go were at the bank for over two decades.

The most recent round of cuts is thought to have happened a few weeks ago, with many of those affected having their last days at the bank this week. Teams working on regulatory reporting, risk, compliance, KYC and fraud detection are thought to have been included in the cuts. 

A spokesperson for Citi said: "We are grateful for the contributions these colleagues have made to Citi." She said "As we said previously, we will continue to reduce our headcount globally in 2026," and that the changes to headcount reflect adjustments to "staffing levels, locations and expertise" to "align with Citi's business needs, efficiencies we have gained through technology; and progress against our Transformation work, which is nearing Citi’s target state."

Some of the eliminated jobs have been automated. Some have moved offshore. Some have been subjected to both of these things. Citi has a "Solutions Center" in Costa Rica, for example, and is currently hiring project managers there to work on its "data governance foundation." Tim Ryan, the vigorous former PWC partner who's tasked with cleaning up Citi's data issues and thus escaping its 2020 consent order, was in Costa Rica a few weeks ago and said Citi employees there are using AI in "powerful, practical ways."

 Citi is thought to have made rolling cuts across the US this year, not all of which have been documented in WARN notices due to varying documentation rules by state. More cuts are expected in the weeks to come. 

In July, we noted that Citi had cut 7,000 jobs in six months but that it still employed 9,000 more people than before the consent order was imposed. Citi hasn't said that it wants to reduce headcount back to its pre-consent order level. But CFO Gonzalo Luchetti has said that as transformation work relating to the order nears an end, costs will be trimmed. This is being combined with a "structural efficiency push" that has mapped over 100 processes for automation. 

Citi insiders who have been let go after spending their entire careers at the bank said it's a "tough transition." 

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