Citigroup has laid out plans to double the number of private bankers in North America, roughly doubling the workforce to about 260 bankers from the current total of 130.

Citigroup has laid out plans to double the number of private bankers in North America, roughly doubling the workforce to about 260 bankers from the current total of 130, Dow Jones reported.

The target was set by Peter Charrington, chief executive of Citi Private Bank North America, in an interview with the news service. The firm has already made a number of important hires: in the US, it has appointed two senior Barclays Wealth managers to take up posts in its regional divisions.

The growth ambition is a sign of how the US banking group is looking to recover from the mauling inflicted by the credit crunch. Mr Charrington, as exclusively reported at the time by WealthBriefing, took up his post last year after transferring from Europe.

"We have 22 locations in North America and will add selectively by putting talent in key markets," Mr Charrington is quoted as having said. A spokesperson for Citi Private Bank reportedly declined to identify the locations where the hiring activity will take place or specify the recruitment timeline.

Meanwhile, Citi’s group CEO, Vikram Pandit, has told the Financial Times of his ambitions to grow the bank and serve clients such as wealthy persons, although his interview, published today, did not mention the private bank explicitly.

The US government still holds about 27 per cent of the bank, which received billions of dollars in bailout funds.

Mr Pandit wants to shift the focus of the conversation – and of analysts’ valuations – to Citicorp, a collection of commercial, retail and investment bank businesses with a presence in 109 countries, the publication said.

“Over the past few months I visited more than 20 countries meeting clients and what I found is that Citi is at its best with these clients,” he said. “We are part of the fabric of these countries, just like we are in the US. We know the regulators, the government officials and the corporate elite. We have seen them in good times and bad times. They have seen us in good times and bad times,” he said.

In practice, this means targeting the large companies, governments and wealthy savers whose needs range from moving billions of dollars a day across the world to raising capital and having checking accounts in multiple countries.

In the consumer business – a prized legacy of the Citicorp that merged with the insurance and investment banking group Travelers to form Citigroup in 1998 - Mr Pandit is clear about the kind of customers he wants.

“We will focus on the 100 metropolitan areas we are present in: 150 metropolitan areas account for 30 per cent of world GDP and that is our sweet spot,” he says. “The landmark product for the international consumer business is CitiGold [accounts] for affluent customers.”