CITIBANK BUSINESS STRATEGY

CITIBANK BUSINESS STRATEGY

Citibank Business Strategy

Introduction

E-business relies on the development of new business strategies based on networks. The world has become increasingly inter-connected via telecommunication networks and computers. These offer fast, flexible, and cost-effective ways of doing business. Citibank is a subsidiary of Citigroup, a strong financial brand with more than 100 million customers, 5.9 million online relationships and a global reach spanning 100 countries. Citibank is one of the major banks around the world. He is now planning to expand its credit card business in the Asia-Pacific region. Surely, there are threats in the market, but there are also excellent opportunities. In this article, it will analyze the Citibank as a brand, and discuss possible solutions to problems that might occur in the latest market (Shen, 2005, 247).

Citibank started its retail business in 1987, in a very highly competitive environment offering a comprehensive line of high quality financial services targeted to the affluent and middle-income segments. Citibank perceived, as at the edge of innovation leveraging its extensive expertise, it was the first bank in the world to introduce innovative e-business solutions like:

Discussion and Analysis

A company's “competitive strategy” is its basic method of satisfying more of the customer's expectations than its competitors satisfy. Indeed, the competitive strategy of a company includes its target customers and their needs, such as the product type, orders, information, and exceptional services. Porter (1979) introduces the following five competitive forces that shape the strategy: bargaining power of buyers, threats of new entrants, bargaining power of suppliers, threats of substitute products or services, and rivalry among existing competitors (Chu, 2006, 26 ).

Citiphone - 24 hours Phone Banking Service

ATM's Automated Teller Machines

CitiAlert - GSM notifications service

CitiDirect - Corporate Internet Banking Service

E-card - Internet Shopping Card, and

Citibank Online - Retail Internet Banking Service

Facing rapid growth of markets, accelerated advancement in technology, intensive competition from increasing participants, and dynamic needs of customers, the banking industry has evolved very dramatically in the last decade. In 1990, the government revised the Banking Law that made independent establishment of private banks possible. The deregulation considered the driving force that had made all the positive changes. This extensive revision resulted in the opening of 16 privately owned banking institutions that brought the banking industry to a new era.

Competitive analysis (Financial performance)

To dodge direct competition with the government ran bank where serving local companies and corporations was the focus, and to avoid becoming the excessive suppliers to the over served commercial banking sector, these newly set up institutions shifted their attention to attend to individual customers. The industry went from traditional commercial banking dominated to unprecedented consumer banking centered.

Citibank seems to be the most recognized and acknowledged. From the perspective of revenues and profits, it has had outstanding records of accomplishment. Its financial performance has been consistently made jealous of others in the field. Besides the impressive financial statistics, Citibank has also established itself as a market leader all over the world in the banking ...