The sale of its retail businesses in India, South-East Asia and Australia could have given it an excuse to exit some markets or scale back coverage, but Citi remained committed to its pan-Asian footprint.

This uncertain environment was bad news for banks that had failed to diversify, and many cut headcount or counted the cost of bad loans.Ĭiti refined its focus instead. Adding to the pain for Asia, investors cut back on emerging market exposure following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24, and on Chinese assets specifically as defaults mounted in the property sector. That strategy did not work in 2022, as a combination of strict Covid-19 controls, an economic slowdown and low onshore yields convinced many Chinese issuers to stick to their home market for funding.īanks with a concentration on equity capital markets suffered too, as IPO plans were derailed. Plenty of banks have done well over the years focusing most of their efforts on Chinese offshore activity. Issuers in Asia were faced in 2022 with volatile capital markets that were inclined to close at a moment’s notice, but Citigroup provided the stability clients needed to manage their funding plans. Banks which geared their businesses primarily to China or the tech sector struggled for deal flow, but Citigroup’s pan-Asian footprint and diverse sector coverage made it a bastion of stability, while its commercial bank enabled it to give issuers more options in rapidly changing market conditions.

Citi Global Macro Surprise Index