Citi Singapore & Tsao Foundation Launch Southeast Asia's First Financial Education Program for Lower-Income Women Over 40

Citi
Citi, 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, securities brokerage, and wealth management. Citi's major brand names include Citibank, CitiFinancial, Primerica, Smith Barney, Banamex, and Nikko. Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com or www.citi.com.

Citi Foundation
The Citi Foundation is committed to enhancing economic opportunities for underserved individuals and families in the communities where we work throughout the world. Globally, the Citi Foundation is focusing its giving on Microfinance and Microentrepreneurship, which helps individuals become economically self-sufficient; Small and Growing Businesses, leading to economic expansion and job creation; Education, which prepares young people for personal and professional success; Financial Education, which helps individuals make informed financial decisions; and the Environment with a focus on sustainable enterprises that generate jobs and stimulate economic growth while preserving the environment. Additional information can be found at www.citigroupfoundation.org.

Citi Financial Education Program
Based on the belief that knowledge is your greatest asset, the Citi 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. Citi's ten-year, $200 million global commitment is focused in three areas: Personal, Small Business and Institutional Financial Education. Additional information about Citi Financial Education Program, including Citi Foundation guidelines, links and resources and the Citi Financial Education Program Curriculum and Facilitator's Guide may be found at http://financialeducation.citigroup.com.

TSAO Foundation
Established in 1993, the TSAO Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation devoted to promoting successful ageing, alleviating the hardships of ageing, and pioneering new approaches to ageing and eldercare throughout Singapore and the region. The core values are innovation, excellence and constructive change. The Foundation's operations are organised through three main divisions – Community Health Services, Training & Education and Inter-agency Collaboration. To ensure that older people, particularly those in need, have easy access to quality primary healthcare, TSAO Foundation has set up a comprehensive, community-based healthcare system called the Hua Mei Community Health Services. This comprises the Hua Mei Mobile Clinic, Hua Mei Seniors Clinic, Hua Mei Traditional Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture Centre and Hua Mei Care Management. For more information, please refer to www.tsaofoundation.org.


	Printer Friendly Page		FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) April 16, 2008 Citi Singapore & Tsao Foundation Launch Southeast Asia's First Financial Education Program for Lower-Income Women Over 40 Singapore – Citi Singapore and the TSAO Foundation have launched a financial education program targeted at women from the lower income bracket between the ages of 40 and 59. The first of its kind to be launched in Southeast Asia, "Citi-TSAO Foundation Financial Education Program for Mature Women" aims to equip participants with basic money management skills to help them to become more financially stable and secure as they grow older. Through a series of workshops, participants will be introduced to practical knowledge and skills that will enable them to manage their day-to-day finances, avoid debt traps, and save for the long term. The first phase of the program, which includes needs assessment, curriculum development and roll-out of the first training module, is being funded by a S$500,000 grant from the Citi Foundation. The second phase will consist of the development of more training modules and formation of a network and support group for participants. About 2,800 women with a monthly household income of between S$1,200 and S$2,000 will benefit from the pilot program, which will be run by the TSAO Foundation. Dr Mary Ann Tsao, President of the TSAO Foundation, said, "In 2006, the employment rate of women aged 55-64 years was only 39%. This means then that 61% of women are not working. They are most likely at home, looking after their families. These women have either no savings or very little savings due to disrupted careers and are most likely to be adversely affect by both cyclical and structural downturns making them a very vulnerable group". Dr Tsao added, "Through this program we aim to develop the capability of Singaporean women to master their own destinies, so that they have the ability to be more financially independent and to negotiate their options such that they can have financial security in their old age." The course work is currently being developed and will be rolled out from July 2008 through the end of next year. The needs assessment of the focus group discussions with over 300 women in the target group were conducted by Professor Chua Beng Huat from the Asia Research Institute and Department of Sociology at the National University of Singapore and Associate Professor Angelique Chan from the Department of Sociology at the National University of Singapore. Professor Chua explained: "Our observations suggest that the saving habit is well-developed among the women and even those without savings expressed the need and desire to save if there were surplus. In almost all cases where there are children, the children's education was placed as the top priority in the family expenditure. The most common fears include retrenchment and prolonged illness in the retirement years where the costs of living are getting higher." Enhancing women's role by encouraging employment to increase their income levels, especially among those who are beyond childcare responsibilities and the single women in the low income group looking after aged parents, is an important facet of the program. Once established, the pilot program can possibly be replicated and translated into Chinese, Malay and Tamil. Speaking at the launch, Mrs Lim Hwee Hua, Senior Minister of State for Finance and Transport, applauded the organizers of this program for envisaging and conceptualizing the need for such assistance. She said: "I am heartened to see the partnership between the Tsao Foundation and the Citi Foundation to bring knowledge and skills on financial education to women. The Citi-Tsao Foundation Financial Education Program for Mature Women is a very meaningful initiative, which I am sure, will benefit many women in planning for old age income security." Mr Piyush Gupta, Citi Country Officer for Singapore and Head of ASEAN, Citi Markets & Banking, said, "With a 105-year history in Singapore, Citi is committed to giving back to the community in the area where it can do best – financial education. While we currently run programs targeted at primary, secondary and tertiary students, and schoolteachers, this is our first effort to reach out to the lower income group. Partnering with the TSAO Foundation to target older women in this category is a natural next step in our efforts to empower communities in the markets where we do business." Added Mr Gupta, "Our involvement in programs such as these also enables Citi staff to volunteer their time and expertise. " Since 2002, Citi Singapore has given more than S$5.5 million in Citi Foundation grants, mostly for long-term financial education and youth entrepreneurship programs such as the Stock Challenge, Making $ense of Money, the Adventures of Agent Penny, and Ideas in Action which have benefited more than 200,000 students at over 50% of schools in Singapore. In addition, the Citi-NIE Financial Literacy Hub for Teachers is helping 500 teachers increase their own financial literacy, and incorporate financial education into their classroom lessons. # # # Citi Citi, 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, securities brokerage, and wealth management. Citi's major brand names include Citibank, CitiFinancial, Primerica, Smith Barney, Banamex, and Nikko. Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com or www.citi.com. Citi Foundation The Citi Foundation is committed to enhancing economic opportunities for underserved individuals and families in the communities where we work throughout the world. Globally, the Citi Foundation is focusing its giving on Microfinance and Microentrepreneurship, which helps individuals become economically self-sufficient; Small and Growing Businesses, leading to economic expansion and job creation; Education, which prepares young people for personal and professional success; Financial Education, which helps individuals make informed financial decisions; and the Environment with a focus on sustainable enterprises that generate jobs and stimulate economic growth while preserving the environment. Additional information can be found at www.citigroupfoundation.org. Citi Financial Education Program Based on the belief that knowledge is your greatest asset, the Citi 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. Citi's ten-year, $200 million global commitment is focused in three areas: Personal, Small Business and Institutional Financial Education. Additional information about Citi Financial Education Program, including Citi Foundation guidelines, links and resources and the Citi Financial Education Program Curriculum and Facilitator's Guide may be found at http://financialeducation.citigroup.com. TSAO Foundation Established in 1993, the TSAO Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation devoted to promoting successful ageing, alleviating the hardships of ageing, and pioneering new approaches to ageing and eldercare throughout Singapore and the region. The core values are innovation, excellence and constructive change. The Foundation's operations are organised through three main divisions – Community Health Services, Training & Education and Inter-agency Collaboration. To ensure that older people, particularly those in need, have easy access to quality primary healthcare, TSAO Foundation has set up a comprehensive, community-based healthcare system called the Hua Mei Community Health Services. This comprises the Hua Mei Mobile Clinic, Hua Mei Seniors Clinic, Hua Mei Traditional Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture Centre and Hua Mei Care Management. For more information, please refer to www.tsaofoundation.org.