Citigroup Inc. (C)’s Michael Corbat: Not Your Average Wall Street CEO

Foolish bottom line

Corbat is a Citi lifer, and takes great pride in his bank. He wants to see Citi’s health and reputation as a great financial institution restored, even if that mean asking shareholders to be patient. That’s the kind of long-term thinking any Fool can get behind.

In addition to the above, Corbat knows the bank like the back of his hand, having worked in many different areas of Citi’s vast financial empire, including critical businesses like Citi Holdings, and foreign operations.

I would never tell a potential investor to only consider leadership when deciding whether or not to invest in a company, but leadership has become my top consideration. The CEO is the captain of the company ship, and can, quite literally, sail it into clear waters, or into the mouth of a hurricane, as we clearly saw happen with many banks in the run-up to the financial crisis.

Certainly, do the rest of your due diligence on Citigroup before deciding whether or not to invest; but when push comes to shove, also give Michael Corbat his due.

The article Citigroup’s Michael Corbat: Not Your Average Wall Street CEO originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by John Grgurich.

Fool contributor John Grgurich owns shares of Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, and JPMorgan Chase & Co. Follow John’s dispatches from the not-so-muddy trenches of big banking and high finance on Twitter @TMFGrgurich. The Motley Fool recommends Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, and Wells Fargo. The Motley Fool owns shares of Bank of America, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase & Co., and Wells Fargo.

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