OREANDA-NEWS. December 23, 2008. Citibank officially welcomed its first customers to the newly opened branch on Lenina Street 31/33, reported the press-centre of Citibank.

Ufa is the third city after Samara and Nizhny Novgorod in the Privolzhsky Federal District of the Russian Federation that now hosts Citibank branches. It is also the 12th Russian city for Citibank to establish branches to serve its growing consumer customers.

Bashkortostan branch offers the full range of products and services to consumer clients that will include:

credit cards and co-brands with Miles&More Lufthansa, Aeroflot, cash-back cards;

consumer loans;

CitiOne package with up to 8 multicurrency accounts;

Citigold VIP package with a diverse range of investment products (structured products, mutual funds, international wealth management);

payroll projects;

wide range of privileges and discounts throughout the world.

Citibank clients have an opportunity to manage their accounts seamlessly anywhere in Russia or in the world in person, over the phone via 24hours CitiPhone service, or the Internet banking Citibank Online. The program for small and medium sized enterprises will soon be also offered.

"We remain very committed to our operations in Russia even throughout these difficult markets," said Zdenek Turek, Citi Russia and CIS Head*. "We hope to become the region’s top and highly regarded client-focused bank that offers clients world-class products and services tailored for Bashkortostan residents".

"The new branch opening will let us expand our presence on the Ufa banking market and offer the state-of-the-art technology and innovative services to our clients and they will be able to use the same range of products that we offer in Moscow, St. Pete and other Russian regions," said Sergey Korotkov, Citi Russia Regional Expansion Head. "Citi Russia sees strong growth potential in Russian regions and will continue its expansion adding new branches and ATMs across the country," Sergey added.

Besides introducing state-of-the-art technology and global expertise to Bashkortostan consumer market, Citibank plans to continue to play an active role in the local community. Already over 30 Citi volunteers in Ufa took part in the third Citi Global Community Day by spending a day at Ufa orphanages No. 2 for kids with slow development.

"Working with local communities is a core part of Citi’s business strategy, and we also hope to soon welcome Bashkortostan Universities to the Citi Professors program that develops training and innovative teaching modules in finance and business administration. The program already operates in five large universities in Russian cities - Rostov, Yekaterinburg, Nizhny Novgorod; Volgograd and St. Petersburg," added Zdenek Turek.