Citibank Korea suggested its workers take voluntary retirement as an option in a recent e-mail sent to its employees, sources said Wednesday, as the firm has been gearing up to sell-off its consumer banking business.

“Our executives understand your concerns due to the announcement concerning Citigroup’s pursuit of consumer banking business exit strategy here,” Citibank Korea CEO Yoo Myung-soon said in the email written in Korean.

“We will make our best efforts to hold on to our employees through a retention of our workforce in the sales process, voluntary retirement and reshuffling,” she added.

Citibank Korea told reporters last month, also via email, that potential bidders remain pessimistic toward a plan of retaining all employees.

It had fueled concerns of a massive layoff in the process, but with the firm putting voluntary retirement on the table, industry watchers said the option is projected to pave a smoother road towards an exit.

Yoo explained that the firm will put “employment stability” above everything else in the sales process and has yet to review any plans that involve non-voluntary reduction of the workforce.

If Citibank Korea officially starts receiving voluntary retirement applications from employees, it would mark the first of such move since 2014. Some 650 employees accepted the early retirement package in 2014 when the firm offered to pay 36 to 60 months worth of salary in advance. The amount varied according to years of service.

As of end-2020, over 70 percent of Citibank Korea‘s 3,500 employees and executives belonged to the consumer banking business.

Citibank Korea said earlier that the details of its exit plan would be revealed next month. It will prioritize bidders seeking acquisition of the entire retail banking business rather than parts of it. It has also put a complete pull-out of its retail business “in phases” as a viable option on the table as well, hinting that it would rather pursue an exit than carry out a subpar deal.

A list of potential bidders has yet to be disclosed.

Citibank Korea is a wholly owned subsidiary of Citibank Overseas Investment Corp., based in the US state of Delaware. It was launched in 2004, decades after Citigroup opened its first branch here in 1967.

Citibank Korea’s net profit in the January-March period fell 19 percent on-year to 48.2 billion won ($43.2 million) and its total assets shed 0.9 percent to 51.7 trillion won in the same period.

By Jung Min-kyung (mkjung@heraldcorp.com)