Historic Predecessors of Citi Likely Enriched by Slavery, According to Citi's Suggestions
Citi Addresses Past Ties to U.S. Slave Trade
In a bid to address its historical connections to slavery, Citigroup has commissioned an independent review of its past dealings. The review, conducted by a historical firm, has uncovered evidence suggesting that some of Citigroup's predecessor entities likely indirectly profited from the U.S. slave trade.
The investigations, reported by The New York Times, reveal that Citigroup did not directly purchase, sell, or hold enslaved persons. However, it is believed that the ties were through financial transactions or business relationships with entities that owned enslaved people or utilized their labor.
One such connection is with Moses Taylor, a former director and president of City Bank of New York (a Citigroup predecessor), who was associated with the sugar trade in Cuba. Taylor's external businesses with accounts at Citi, which imported sugar from Cuban plantations, used slave labor.
City Bank of New York likely profited indirectly from enslaved labor in Cuba by engaging in transactions with Taylor and his businesses. Other founding members or early directors of the bank may have also enslaved people, but specific names from the bank's founding era with documented slave ownership are not detailed in the available sources.
Citigroup's peers have also found instances of their predecessor institutions owning enslaved people, writing insurance contracts on them, or accepting them as collateral for loans. In the early 2000s, some states and cities passed measures requiring companies to disclose any previous ties to slavery in their business dealings.
In response to these findings, Citigroup has pledged to spend $1.15 billion over the next three years on initiatives aimed at closing the racial wealth gap and promoting anti-racist financial practices. The commitment includes helping to minimize the racial wealth gap by expanding its financial inclusion products in communities of color and supporting diverse entrepreneurs.
Citigroup's moves follow a trend among other major banks. Banks, including Bank of America, PNC, U.S. Bank, and smaller lenders like Huntington Bank, have collectively pledged billions of dollars to promote Black homeownership, businesses, and Black-owned depository institutions in the wake of the police killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and others.
Despite the findings and the pledges, Citigroup has remained silent on the matter. A representative for Citi declined to comment to The New York Times. The research, however, indicates that inequities resulting from the U.S. history of slavery have shaped barriers that Black communities continue to face more than 150 years after the abolition of slavery.
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