Citigroup Appointed as Strategic Partner by Winterthur Life UK, to provide Key Fund Accounting and Administration Functions
Edinburgh & London 14 November 2005 — Global Transaction Services, a business unit of Citigroup Corporate and Investment Banking today announced it has been appointed to be the preferred service provider for fund administration, custody and related services, with leading pensions and investments provider, Winterthur Life UK Ltd, part of Winterthur Group, which is part of Credit Suisse Group.
This strategic agreement will see Winterthur Life UK Ltd transition its fund accounting and administration functions onto Citigroup’s Edinburgh funds platform. It is anticipated that the transition to the new platform will take place in the third quarter of 2006.
David Phillips, Global Transaction Services, EMEA Head of Financial Institutions, said; "We greatly value our longstanding relationship with Winterthur Life UK Ltd and are very excited about taking this strategic partnership to the next level. There is exceptional synergy in our organisations' focus on operational efficiency and top-class client delivery, and we look forward to transferring their operation onto our recognised world-class funds administration platform in Edinburgh.
"This transaction underlines Citigroup's strength in the funds administration business. It also reinforces our commitment to Edinburgh as our base for UK market expansion and to being a full-service provider in the funds and insurance market."
Mike Kellard, Chief Executive Officer at Winterthur Life UK Ltd said; "This partnership gives us access to some of the most sophisticated systems and processes available. They will be vital to our continuing success in an increasingly complex industry. It will allow us to develop and deliver new products to new markets and help reinforce our reputation as a truly global insurance house. Winterthur Life UK Ltd has a reputation for operational efficiency and we are committed to sustaining this excellence in the long term. During our discussions with Citigroup, it became clear there was an opportunity to secure a deal that was of benefit to all our stakeholders.
"We are very excited about developing our partnership with Citigroup, who we have worked closely with in a number of areas over the years. They have demonstrated a sound understanding of our business needs and a clear vision for the future. Their ambition in this market, and their commitment to Edinburgh as the base for this expansion in the UK, makes them the perfect candidate to support our own business model".
Winterthur Life UK Ltd manages around £7bn on behalf of retail, insured and institutional clients.
Citigroup
Citigroup (NYSE: C), 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. 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 Corporate and Investment Banking
Our Corporate and Investment Banking group achieves the extraordinary
for our clients around the world. No financial institution is more
committed to understanding and advancing the goals of its clients
- our diverse and talented staff in some 100 countries advises companies,
governments, and institutional investors on the best way to realize
their strategic objectives. We create solutions for and provide the
broadest possible capital and market access to thousands of issuer
and investor clients, and no institution better executes the increasingly
complex payment and cash management solutions required in today's
global economy. Core business lines under Citigroup Corporate and
Investment Banking include Global Capital Markets, Global Banking
and Global Transaction Services.
Certain statements in this document are “forward-looking statements”
within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act.
These statements are based on management’s current expectations
and are subject to uncertainty and changes in circumstances. Actual
results may differ materially from those included in these statements
due to a variety of factors. More information about these factors
is contained in Citigroup’s filings with the Securities and
Exchange Commission.
Winterthur Life UK Ltd
Winterthur Life UK Limited is part of Winterthur Group, which is part
of Credit Suisse Group, a leading global financial services company
headquartered in Zurich.
Winterthur Life UK offers pensions and investments for high net worth
clients distributed via top tier IFAs and is renowned for its innovative
approach to financial products. Its philosophy of transparent product
propositions offers advisers a range of retirement and investment
solutions with an open charging structure.
Winterthur Life UK is one of the UK’s top 10 providers of single
premium personal pensions, trustee investment plans and corporate
pensions via IFAs and a leading provider of self-investment retirement
plans like Self Invested Personal Pensions (“Sipps”).
Any opinions expressed in this media communication are made as at
the date of publication but are subject to change without notice.
Past performance is not a guide to the future. The value of shares/units
and the income from them can go down as well as up. Exchange rate
fluctuations may cause the value of underlying investments to fall
as well as rise. Yields are not guaranteed and may fall or rise.
Winterthur Life UK Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial
Services Authority.
www.winterthur-ifa.co.uk
Winterthur Group
Winterthur Group is a leading Swiss insurance company with head office
in Winterthur. As an international company, the Group provides a broad
range of property and liability insurance products, as well as insurance
solutions in life and pensions that are tailored to the individual
needs of private and corporate clients. Winterthur Group has approximately
19,500 employees worldwide. The company achieved a total business
volume of CHF 17.4 billion in the first half-year of 2005 and reported
assets under management of CHF 149.9 billion as of June 30, 2005.
Credit Suisse Group
Credit Suisse Group is a leading global financial services company
headquartered in Zurich. It provides private clients and small and
medium-sized companies with private banking and financial advisory
services, and pension and insurance solutions from Winterthur. In
the area of investment banking, it serves global institutional, corporate,
government and individual clients in its role as a financial intermediary.
Credit Suisse Group's registered shares (CSGN) are listed in Switzerland
and in the form of American Depositary Shares (CSR) in New York. The
Group employs around 60,000 staff worldwide. As of June 30, 2005,
it reported assets under management of CHF 1,341.2 billion.
