University for Bankers

Citibank NA is informally called the University for bankers in the country. Here are some anecdotes from five of its alumni, taken from the coffee table book published by Citibank as part of its centenary celebration last year.

The beauty of Citibank then was that we had yearly management conferences not only in New York, but in other places like one in Florida in a resort. We used to go to India because the rupee was blocked, and India had a lot of blocked earnings. It was beautiful. We stayed on boathouses, one officer per boat, and a valet each. Fantastic! We felt like maharajahs. And we were only junior officers then.

When China re-opened in 1978, Citibank was the first to bring its entire senior management to Beijing for a planning conference with George Vojta. Every country head in Asia was there. We joked on the plane that if it ever crashed, we would have been violating Citibank rules. But we said "Never mind; they can write us a memo afterwards telling us never to do it again." Someone said "Don’t worry. That’s 13 new vacancies for country head."

Some of us visited places where Citibank had been. For people like Ray Kathe (the bank’s "Mr. Asia"), this was an emotional homecoming because he was the last senior officer to leave China in 1949. I think Ray’s parents were missionaries there.

Rafael B. Buenaventura
Governor, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas
Class of 1965

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Once in a while we would invite American officers to join us, so that they could understand what we were like. Once, we made the mistake of throwing an expatriate officer into the pool. The next morning we were all summoned to the manager’s office and given a good lecture on respecting the officer and not engaging in all this horseplay around the pool.

One Christmas, the group composed a song – snide remarks about another expatriate officer. Someone must have squealed, because we were all summoned to Wheeler’s office again to sing the jingle we had composed right there, standing in front of him. He was so mad. So mad. But that was part of the ritual of not only bonding, but strengthening the officer corps in Citibank. Not just having a rowdy time – psychologically, I think it was needed.

Antonio H. Ozaeta
President, Philippine Trust Company
Class of 1961

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We had six senior officers on a platform all of whom had desktop call bells. But only one fellow would pound on his bell for a page to come. We had great fun with this guy. Somebody stuck bubblegum in his bell one morning, possibly Eddie Regala. When he pounded on the bell, nothing happened. The Golden Boys laughed over it for weeks. It remains a mystery who did it.

Ramon S. Orosa
First Filipino Citibank Resident
Vice President, 1971
Class of 1961

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One of the largest and most influential international banking institutions disclosed recently that Manila has been chosen as one of four world centers for a revolutionary development in the field of banking. First National City Bank has selected its Juan Luna, Manila branch and three other branches in other parts of the world as study centers for an extensive "Operations Team Program."

Under the program, Manila will serve as a nucleus for reorienting operations specialists from Hong Kong, Japan, Malaya, India, Pakistan, and the Philippines. The Philippine phase of the program, lasting one year, is designed to develop and upgrade equipment, forms, procedures and services. The extensive studies of work flow procedures will benefit all banks in the Philippines as they involve many operational matters common to all banks in the community.

Edward S. Go
CEO, United Coconut Planters Bank
Class of 1962
"Manila Picked for FNCB ‘Operations Team Program"
Manila Times, 14 March 1964

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The next batch of trainees after I was hired was introduced to us. One particular trainee, an M.B.A. from Wharton, was assigned to the Port Area branch Cash department where I was with other trainees. We advised this trainee to report next morning and to be in his Ivy-league best, now being a "banker." When he showed up, we put him on his first assignment – to go with the armored car to collect the deposits of La Suerte Cigarette Factory at the South Superhighway. The armored car has not changed much since the Sixties – steel plated, slits for openings, slow-moving and very uncomfortable and hot inside. There was no turning back. He spent the entire day in the armored car except when they picked up the cash, then put it inside the safe in the armored car. It took a number of days for us to be friends again.

Teodoro B. Montecillo
Member, Monetary Bank,
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas
Class of 1965