Citi close to an agreement with US regulator: Report

LONDON: Citigroup is close to a "secret agreement" with one of its main regulators, which will increase scrutiny of the financial services behemoth, says a media report.

"Citigroup is close to a secret agreement with one of its main regulators that will increase scrutiny of the US bank and force it to fix financial, managerial and governance issues," The Financial Times has reported.

Attributing to people close to the situation, the daily said the deal had been discussed in recent weeks amid increased pressure on Citi from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and could be finalised soon.

"The proposed agreement requires, among other things, that Citi strengthens its board and governance, improves asset quality, better manages expenses and provides more information to regulators on its capital and liquidity," the newspaper said quoting these people.

The Financial Times noted the regulator's action highlights concern over Citi's financial health, governance and the strength of its management team, led by its chief executive Vikram Pandit.

The FDIC is known to be frustrated with the slow pace of Citi's "toxic" assets sale, its losses and the lack of commercial banking experience at the top, the daily said.