26th Jan 2015 12:37
LONDON (Alliance News) - Citizens Financial Group Inc, the US retail lender majority-owned by Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC, Monday reported a rise in fourth-quarter net income, helped by higher revenue and lower provisions for credit losses.
Citizens listed on the New York Stock Exchange last September, leaving Royal Bank of Scotland Group with a 70.5% stake in the bank following a share buyback the following month. RBS is selling Citizens as Chief Executive Ross McEwan implements a strategy of shrinking the state-backed UK bank's international operations and focusing on its domestic market.
In a statement, Citizens, which is headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, said net income rose to USD197 million in the last three months of 2014, compared with USD152 million in the corresponding period of the prior year, as revenue increased by USD21 million to USD1.179 billion. Provisions for credit losses fell to USD72 million from USD132 million.
The bank also said it will pay a quarterly cash dividend of USD0.10 per common share.
Citizens Financial said it swung to a net profit of USD865 million in 2014 from a USD3.426 billion net loss in the prior year.
"Following our successful initial public offering in the third quarter, we are laser-focused on the execution of our plan to drive continued improvement in profitability and deliver the best possible banking experience for our customers," Bruce Van Saun, chairman and chief executive, said in a statement.
RBS is looking to fully exit its investment in Citizens by 2016.
The UK government still owns about 80% of RBS following the bank's bailout during the financial crisis.
By Samuel Agini; [email protected]; @samuelagini
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