Two Citigroup traders 'resign over regulation fears

5 February 2010

Two senior traders at Citigroup have resigned from the company over fears that President Obama's new proposals to split up the banking sector will make their current roles untenable, it has been reported.

People close to the matter told Reuters that Matt Carpenter and Matt Newton, who ran a proprietary trading unit for Citigroup, have now left the firm to join a hedge fund.

Their division has already come under increased scrutiny from regulators as a result of Citigroup taking government bailout funding and last month's proposal that retail banks should be stopped from proprietary trading altogether is believed to have been the last straw for the pair.

Citigroup has recently repaid $20 billion of its debt to the state, but 27 per cent of its shares are still owned by the government, meaning that it is still under pressure to downsize its operations.

Last week, Bloomberg reported that the firm is closing to selling off its private equity unit, which manages around $2 billion worth of funds for the company.Tony Aynsley

(good luck fellas)