Anand Selva becomes Citigroup's global consumer banking head

INDIAN Anand Selva has been appointed as the global head of consumer banking at Citigroup effective January 2021.

He will fill the position left vacant by Jane Fraser when she becomes the first female CEO of a major Wall Street bank, Citigroup said.

Since 2018, he has been the CEO of US consumer banking at Citi.

Joined the firm in 1991, Selva helped shape the international banking giant's consumer strategy in different regions including Asia and the US.

He was the man behind the bank’s focus on digital consumer offerings, largely shunning the heavier focus on branches. He spearheaded agreements with Google and American Airlines Group to create new banking products.

"Anand has unified our products into one client-centric business, strengthened talent and deployed a digital-first strategy that is elevating the growth trajectory of our franchise," the bank said in a joint memo signed by Fraser and outgoing CEO Mike Corbat.

Selva studied in Coimbatore Institute of Technology and Madurai Kamaraj University.

He joined Citigroup in October 1991 in Chennai in the operations management division.

He served the bank in Singapore, Taiwan and China before moving to New York two years ago.

Citigroup also said that its chief risk officer Brad Hu has decided to leave the bank after 12 years at the firm.

Last month Citigroup agreed to pay a $400 million penalty and overhaul its risk management, data governance and internal controls across the company after US regulators identified "several longstanding deficiencies" and operational lapses.