Citigroup Inc (C) Wants to Rule the World

And right now, Citi is the leading global bank out of the Big Four, so its perfectly positioned to pursue this venture. For the first quarter of 2013, Bank of America Corp (NYSE:BAC)‘s Global Banking unit accounted for just 18.1% of its total revenue. For the same period, JPMorgan‘s Corporate & Investment Banking unit accounted for 48.5% of its total revenue. And Wells Fargo & Co (NYSE:WFC) isn’t even in the game. At the moment, only 3% of its revenue comes from overseas, and CEO John Stumpf apparently likes it that way.

Whatever ultimately comes of this move into Iraq, one thing is certain: You can’t fault Michael Corbat for lack of daring, or ambition. There’s only so much room for growth in the U.S. banking market, especially at the big-bank end. As such, the Big Four will have to find growth overseas if they want that growth to be significant — which, of course, is the only kind of growth investors want to see. Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) also already has big-time customers in the Middle East. All things considered, Corbat’s bet in Iraq is a good one.

The article Citigroup Wants to Rule the World originally appeared on Fool.com.

Fool contributor John Grgurich owns shares of Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) and JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM). Follow John’s dispatches from the not-so-muddy trenches of high-finance and big-banking on Twitter @TMFGrgurich. The Motley Fool recommends Bank of America Corp (NYSE:BAC) and Wells Fargo & Co (NYSE:WFC). The Motley Fool owns shares of Bank of America, Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C), JPMorgan Chase, and Wells Fargo.

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