Citibank Korea
The South Korean banking subsidiary of Citigroup, built around the former KorAm Bank and serving consumer and institutional customers.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
Citibank Korea is Citigroup's banking subsidiary in South Korea. Its local operating history is rooted in Korean American Bank, commonly known as KorAm Bank, which was established in March 1983 as a joint venture. Bank of America held 50.1 percent of the founding institution, while the remaining capital was divided among 13 major South Korean companies. This ownership structure gave the bank both a Korean corporate base and a connection to an international banking group. In 2003, Citibank acquired KorAm Bank. The transaction provided Citi with an established Korean banking platform, including local customers, branches, operating infrastructure and regulatory presence. The resulting business became Citibank Korea and formed part of Citigroup's international banking network. Its local activities have included consumer banking, corporate and institutional banking, credit cards and other financial services. The bank has also been associated with cross-border and internationally oriented services, reflecting the wider Citigroup network, although the available reference material does not provide a complete current product catalogue or detailed financial breakdown. Citibank Korea has operated through a branch and automated-teller-machine network. The cited reference describes 134 branches with ATMs capable of supporting transactions using most international cards. The bank subsequently pursued a substantial reduction in its branch footprint, setting a goal in 2017 of reducing the network from 134 branches to 32. This reflects the broader shift in banking toward digital channels and a more concentrated physical presence, although the reference material does not document the final number of branches or the complete implementation timetable. The bank has served both individuals and institutions. Consumer offerings have included deposit and general banking services, credit cards and wealth-related services, while institutional activities have covered corporate banking and other financial services. Existing descriptions of its positioning emphasize affluent customers, international clients and cross-border banking capabilities. Those attributes are consistent with Citibank's global network, but the available sources do not establish a separate current brand promise or a definitive ranking of its market position. Citibank Korea has also faced public scrutiny. In 2015, the Financial Supervisory Service identified it as the bank receiving the highest level of consumer complaints among the banks covered by the cited report. This is a regulatory and customer-service criticism rather than evidence of a criminal finding, and the available material does not explain the individual causes, remediation measures or longer-term outcome. The supplied references provide only limited information about current leadership, recent financial performance, marketing campaigns, executive appointments and later strategic developments. Accordingly, this dossier records the documented ownership history, banking scope, network strategy and consumer-complaint issue without adding unsupported claims about revenue, profitability, current branch numbers or named executives.
History
Citibank Korea's local history begins with Korean American Bank, or KorAm Bank, founded in March 1983. The institution was organized as a joint venture with Bank of America holding 50.1 percent and the rest of the capital shared by 13 major Korean companies. This structure combined a controlling international banking investor with substantial participation from South Korean corporate shareholders. For its first two decades, KorAm Bank operated as a South Korean banking institution with an international shareholder connection. The available reference material does not provide a detailed account of its early branch expansion, product launches, management or financial results. It does, however, identify KorAm as the core business from which Citibank Korea developed. Citibank acquired KorAm Bank in 2003. The acquisition gave Citigroup a pre-existing Korean platform rather than requiring it to build a local bank entirely from the beginning. Following the transaction, the business operated as Citibank Korea, a South Korean subsidiary of Citigroup. Its activities included consumer banking, corporate and institutional services, credit cards and other financial products. The local franchise therefore combined domestic banking operations with access to Citigroup's international network. The bank maintained a substantial physical distribution system. A reference description records ATMs at all 134 of its branches and notes that these machines supported transactions using most international cards. This infrastructure was relevant to both local customers and customers with international banking needs. By 2017, Citibank Korea had set a goal of reducing its branch network from 134 locations to 32. The documented decision points to a strategic effort to streamline physical banking operations, although the available material does not state whether the target was fully reached or describe the precise service model that replaced the closed locations. Citibank Korea's consumer-facing reputation was challenged in 2015, when the Financial Supervisory Service identified it as the bank with the worst consumer-complaint performance in the cited comparison. The reference does not give a breakdown of complaint categories, the number of complaints, or the bank's response. It is therefore best understood as a documented regulatory and customer-service criticism rather than a basis for broader allegations. The available material presents Citibank Korea as a continuing South Korean banking subsidiary offering services to consumers and institutions. It does not provide sufficient evidence for a detailed account of later ownership changes, current leadership, financial performance, branch totals, marketing activity or the status of individual products. Those areas remain open for verification through current company, regulatory and corporate sources.
- 2017
Branch-network reduction target is announced
[1]Citibank Korea sets a goal of reducing its branch network from 134 locations to 32.
- 2015
Consumer-complaint ranking draws regulatory attention
[1]The Financial Supervisory Service identifies Citibank Korea as the bank with the highest level of consumer complaints in the cited comparison.
- 2003
Citibank acquires KorAm Bank
[1]Citibank acquires the Korean banking institution that becomes the core of Citibank Korea.
- 1983
Korean American Bank is founded
[1]Korean American Bank, also known as KorAm Bank, is established in March as a joint venture led by Bank of America and 13 South Korean corporate shareholders.
Products and positioning
An internationally connected South Korean bank serving consumer, corporate and institutional customers, with emphasis on Citigroup's cross-border network and financial-services capabilities.
Retail banking
Consumer banking
Citibank Korea provides banking services for individual customers in South Korea. The available reference identifies consumer banking as a core activity but does not enumerate the full range of deposits, payment products, lending products or digital services offered at any particular date.
Commercial banking
Corporate and institutional banking
The bank serves companies and institutions alongside retail customers. This area is part of its role as a Citigroup subsidiary and is associated with corporate banking, institutional financial services and internationally connected banking capabilities. Specific current products and client segments are not detailed in the supplied sources.
Payment cards
Credit cards
Credit cards are among the financial products offered by Citibank Korea in the South Korean market. The reference confirms the product category but does not provide reliable details about card names, rewards, fees, issuance dates or current availability.
Cross-border financial services
International banking services
Citibank Korea's connection to Citigroup supports an internationally oriented positioning, including services relevant to customers and institutions with cross-border needs. The supplied material does not establish a complete list of branded international-account, remittance or foreign-exchange offerings, so individual service names are not asserted here.
Controversies
2021
FSC reviews Citibank Korea consumer-banking shutdown decision
South Korea's Financial Services Commission was reviewing whether Citibank Korea's decision to shut down its consumer-banking business complied with local banking law. The article does not report a final determination.
2015
Consumer-complaint criticism
The Financial Supervisory Service identified Citibank Korea as the bank with the worst consumer-complaint record in the cited comparison. The available reference does not specify the complaint categories, remediation measures or subsequent outcome.
Brand decisions
2017
Branch-network reductionStrategyBackground
Citibank Korea operated a network described in the reference as having 134 branches, with ATMs available at all of them.
Action taken
The bank set a target to reduce its branch network from 134 branches to 32.
Aftermath
The decision signaled a planned reduction in physical banking infrastructure. The supplied source does not confirm the final branch count or the full operational consequences.
2003
Acquisition of KorAm BankM&ABackground
Citibank sought to operate in South Korea through the established Korean American Bank platform rather than relying solely on a newly built local operation.
Action taken
Citibank acquired KorAm Bank, which became the core of Citibank Korea.
Aftermath
The acquisition established Citigroup's South Korean banking subsidiary and expanded its local consumer, corporate and institutional banking presence.
Recent events
Citibank Korea appoints Kim Kyoung-ho as CEO[3]
Reported:
Citibank Korea appointed its head of corporate banking, Kim Kyoung-ho, as its new CEO. He succeeds Yoo Myung-soon and will serve a three-year term.
- Unconfirmed
FSC reviews Citibank Korea consumer-banking shutdown decision[2]
Reported:
South Korea's Financial Services Commission was reviewing whether Citibank Korea's decision to shut down its consumer-banking business complied with local banking law. The article does not report a final determination.
Sources3 sources
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