SINGAPORE (THE BUSINESS TIMES) - Citi has appointed Ms Serene Gay as its new Singapore head of credit cards and personal loans for its global consumer banking business.
With more than 16 years of experience in Citi across Singapore, Thailand and China, Ms Gay, who is Singaporean, will oversee credit cards and unsecured lending covering Citi-branded and co-branded cards for consumers as well as Citi-branded commercial cards, said the bank in a statement on Monday (May 24).
In her new role, she will also be responsible for driving customer growth, portfolio management, product management and customer retention for credit cards and ready credit.
Citi is one of the largest foreign banks in Singapore, with a total headcount of about 8,500. It is also among the largest credit card issuers here, with a market share of 25 per cent on rollover balances.
Ms Gay succeeds Mr Vikas Kumar, who will be joining Citi's United States consumer unsecured lending team as the head of personal instalment lending, after more than 4½ years of leading the Singapore cards and personal lending team.
In her previous role as head of client growth, cards and loans for the Asia-Pacific (Apac) and Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) office, Ms Gay was instrumental in driving the digitisation of the credit cards business in China in terms of payments, acquisition and servicing capabilities, turning around the key business drivers and financials for cards, said the bank.
She also helped to re-engineer the unsecured lending offering there through collaborations and partnerships with dominant digital ecosystems and fintech partners. During her posting in China, she held various senior roles in mortgage, marketing, digital banking, and cards and loans.
Mr Brendan Carney, chief executive officer of Citibank Singapore and the global consumer banking Asean cluster head, said: "Serene's appointment is a reflection of our ongoing efforts to develop and grow our Singaporean talent.
"Serene's strong international experience across some of Asia's most dynamic markets makes her the ideal leader to drive our already strong cards and loans franchise to new levels of success."
Mr Kartik Mani, head of Apac and EMEA consumer bank, added: "Our consumer business in Singapore is strategically important and a critical source of innovation and growth, and I am looking forward to progressing the momentum with Serene at the helm of our cards and loans businesses."
Singapore is now one of four key consumer markets for the Wall Street giant after it made a call last month to exit 13 consumer markets, including China and India, citing the lack of scale needed to compete in those markets.
