U.S.: Citigroup Pledges Support to Illinois in Effort to Provide Personal Finance Education

Citigroup
Citigroup, the leading global financial services company, has some 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 100 countries, providing consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, insurance, securities brokerage, and asset management. Major brand names under Citigroup’s trademark red umbrella include Citibank, CitiFinancial, Primerica, Smith Barney and Banamex. Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com.

Citigroup Financial Education Program
The Citigroup Financial Education Program is a global, company-wide effort to identify, support and implement initiatives that help give individuals, families and communities the tools needed to make sound financial decisions. Citigroup’s 10-year, $200 million global financial education commitment is focused in three areas: Personal Financial Education, Small Business Financial Education, and Institutional Financial Education. Additional information about Citigroup’s Financial Education Program, including Foundation guidelines, links and resources, including the Citigroup Financial Education Program Curriculum and Facilitator’s Guide may be found at: www.financialeducation.citigroup.com.


	Printer Friendly Page		FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) June 27, 2006 U.S.: Citigroup Pledges Support to Illinois in Effort to Provide Personal Finance Education Surge in Financial Education Legislation in 18 states Chicago, Illinois – In support of the recently passed State Finance Act, which was amended by adding a Financial Literacy Fund, Citigroup’s Office of Financial Education today announced plans to share its free Citigroup Financial Education Curriculum and provide Citigroup employees as expert guest speakers in the schools. The Act instructs the State Board of Education to develop and adopt curricula, materials, and guidelines for school boards to use in implementing a program of instruction on financial literacy within courses currently offered in public schools. “The momentum for adding financial literacy curricula in schools is clearly growing,” said Dara Duguay, Director of Citigroup’s Office of Financial Education. “According to the Jump$tart Coalition’s 2005 personal finance survey, only 16% of high school seniors nationally have taken an entire course covering personal finance basics. Citigroup is pleased to provide our curricula to schools, non-profit organizations and state agencies in any state that passes personal finance legislation, to help reverse this shortfall.” 2006 has seen a surge in financial education legislation as a variety of federal and state sponsored bills have been introduced in 18 states. Only 13 states currently have a personal finance requirement. By 2004, there were eight states that made personal finance a requirement for high school graduation and by the end of 2005 five more states had passed similar legislation. Already this year, Michigan, Tennessee and Iowa have passed personal finance legislation, including: Michigan: Act directs the State Department of Education to develop a financial literacy course to be offered as an elective. Tennessee: Act directs the Commissioner of Education and the State Board of Education to approve curricula, materials and guidelines implementing financial literacy instruction within courses currently offered in public high schools. Iowa: Resolution urges the Iowa Department of Education to integrate the principles of basic personal finance into the public school curriculum in Iowa. “In the wake of this surge in legislation, Citigroup is optimistic that a significantly higher number of high school students will graduate in the coming years with an exposure to basic financial skills,” Duguay added. In 2004, Citigroup and the Citigroup Foundation announced a ten-year, $200 million global financial education commitment, the formation of a new Office of Financial Education and a global volunteer initiative designed to encourage its 300,000 employees around the world to devote time to support financial education and other charitable causes. The Citigroup Financial Education Curriculum is free, available in English and Spanish, and may be found at: http://curriculum.financialeducation.citigroup.com. # # # Citigroup Citigroup, the leading global financial services company, has some 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 100 countries, providing consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, insurance, securities brokerage, and asset management. Major brand names under Citigroup’s trademark red umbrella include Citibank, CitiFinancial, Primerica, Smith Barney and Banamex. Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com. Citigroup Financial Education Program The Citigroup Financial Education Program is a global, company-wide effort to identify, support and implement initiatives that help give individuals, families and communities the tools needed to make sound financial decisions. Citigroup’s 10-year, $200 million global financial education commitment is focused in three areas: Personal Financial Education, Small Business Financial Education, and Institutional Financial Education. Additional information about Citigroup’s Financial Education Program, including Foundation guidelines, links and resources, including the Citigroup Financial Education Program Curriculum and Facilitator’s Guide may be found at: www.financialeducation.citigroup.com.