• Leading the conversation on equity in our industry with our annual disclosure of the company’s raw pay gap
• To address this gap, increasing the representation of Black employees in senior and high-paying roles across the U.S. through goals set in 2018
• Strengthening the pipeline of diverse talent with data-driven recruitment and enhanced campus recruiting at HBCUs and other universities
• Advocate for and engage diverse employees through a robust network of senior-led Affinity groups

Advancing racial equity requires a more intentional focus on the challenges faced by communities of color and a commitment to becoming an anti-racist institution. Citi is taking a hard look at its own policies and practices to actively identify potential bias to help level the playing field for communities of color.

What Citi will do:

• Strengthen due diligence processes for project-related financing to address environmental justice and social impacts on communities of color.
• Develop standards for inclusive software design that eliminate bias and help deliver equitable outcomes to the communities Citi serves.
• Expand Citi’s capital market activities with minority-owned broker dealers, assisting with their business and franchise development.
• Work with marketing, communications and legal partners to establish guidelines that increase representation of people of color on Citi accounts and within their leadership teams.
• Establish a council of senior leaders from across the company to develop additional product innovations, assess performance gaps and hold businesses accountable for Action for Racial Equity commitments.

Homeownership is a key way to build wealth and equity, and safe, affordable housing is an important platform for financial stability. However, Black homeownership is at its lowest level since the 1960s. In addition, rental housing in many urban areas across the country is scarce and too expensive. Compounding this crisis is the near-absence of minority-owned real estate developers in the affordable housing industry.

What Citi will do:

• Expand the U.S. Consumer Bank’s community lending team and its network of correspondent lenders to increase access to Citi’s mortgage products and services among minority borrowers in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods.
• Provide $200 million of equity and preferential financing through Citi Community Capital to affordable and workforce housing projects by minority developers who either are the sole equity owners or are in a joint venture with meaningful equity participation. Some of this funding also will be invested in minority developers to build their capacity and allow them to compete for larger affordable housing projects.

Black-owned businesses have long faced obstacles in obtaining loans. They are the most likely to apply for bank financing, but get turned down at twice the rate as white business owners. This financing gap is especially pronounced in the start-up world, where studies show that Black entrepreneurs receive only 1% of venture capital funding.

What Citi will do:

• Allocate an additional $50 million to the Citi Impact Fund exclusively to support businesses owned by Black entrepreneurs. Citi kicked off the fund in January with $150 million in capital for businesses that are developing solutions to social and environmental challenges.
• Increase Citi business procurement spend with certified diverse suppliers from $700 million to $1 billion annually, including $250 million with Black-owned firms.
• Launch a new program called Citi Start Credit^SM, which will work with Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) to help underserved entrepreneurs increase their credit scores and access more affordable credit.