Citibank Opens Branch For Millionaires At Paragon

Source : The Business Times, February 27, 2008

The bank will be looking at Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand next

THE number of millionaires here is set to grow despite recent market turmoil, says Citibank.

'There is no slowdown in client wealth,' Salman Haider, head of investments for Citibank Singapore, said at a briefing yesterday. 'The wealth effect is still strong.'

To add to the bank's bullishness, a $3.5 million branch for millionaires was officially opened yesterday at Paragon Shopping Centre.

The 6,000 sq ft, 14-meeting room Citigold Select Centre serves clients with at least $1 million of investible assets, and is Citibank's first such centre in South- east Asia.

The new centre complements an existing Citigold Centre on the 14th storey of Paragon. Citigold customers have investible assets of $250,000 and above, while Citigold Select clients have about $1 million to $14 million to invest.

An estimated 38,000 people in Singapore are in this category, and Citibank's revenues from this group surged 50 per cent last year. Assets under management and customer base grew about 30 per cent.

This is the fastest-growing segment in South-east Asia, seeing annual growth of 18-20 per cent, said Jonathan Larsen, Citibank Singapore's chief executive officer and head of the bank's South-east Asia global consumer group.

'Our emphasis on this segment and our investment in this centre demonstrate the growing sophistication of the Singapore market and the increasingly complex needs and expectations of this group of individuals,' said Mr Larsen.

Citigold Select Centres are already in places like Hong Kong, Taiwan and Korea, and Mr Larsen said the bank will be looking at Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand next.

In Singapore, three or four more centres may open in the next year or so.

Besides the usual suite of investment products in equities, commodities, and currencies, Citigold Select clients enjoy tailor-made products structured by the bank to meet individual client needs.

The Citigold Select Centre is staffed by about 20 people, 11 of them relationship managers, and the rest are product specialists and support staff.

The centre is wireless-ready and each room has a large plasma TV that interfaces with PCs, to project images on screen. Video-conferencing capabilities are enabled for clients who want to tap the bank's global research teams for investment trends.

And cash is delivered directly to customers in meeting rooms, eliminating the plebeian need to stand and wait at a counter.