In September 2020, Citibank announced a change in leadership it hoped would usher in a new era for its business. Jane Fraser was slated to become the company’s new Chief Executive Officer, a role she assumed in February of this year. Having spent the last 16 years rising steadily through Citibank’s leadership positions, Fraser seemed like a logical and effective choice.
The bank has been stagnating for a while behind its two biggest rivals, JP Morgan and Bank of America, so Fraser has some built-up pressure behind her. Many view Citibank’s shortcomings as a result of trying to take on too much at once, with its vast array of subsidiaries under one giant umbrella. If that’s the case, then Fraser is a beacon of hope, having had decades of experience cleaning up after recessions and repairing relations with Citibank’s Mexico branch on the heels of south-of-the-border scandals.
“When I was first put in charge of Latin America, there were some pretty negative headlines in the press of Mexico about having a female foreigner with responsibility,” said Fraser in an interview with CNN in 2018. Rather than “manning up” in response to her critics, she showed up to meetings embracing her feminine aesthetic even more, to prove that skirts can just as easily wear the pants in an organization.
Voted one of Fortune’s Most Powerful Women in Business in both 2014 and 2015, her rise to the top might not have been altogether a surprise. However, as the first woman to run the show behind a major Wall Street institution, Jane Fraser has certainly made history. She plans to continue her quest for progress by bringing Citibank into the ranks of big businesses making concerted efforts to improve the world. “Our commitments to closing the gender pay gap, to advancing racial equity, and to pioneering the green agenda have demonstrated that this is good for business and not at odds with it.” Fraser aims to keep these goals from being more than just hot air by boldly leading Citibank into a new era.