Citi swipes Amex global cards head

Citi has recruited Kartik Mani as the Asian head of cards and unsecured lending, according to an announcement. He will be responsible for lending and partnerships in Asia.

Prior to joining the bank Mani served as global head of consumer credit cards and lending at American Express. He was also previously the global head of cards and consumer lending at Standard Chartered, and the global cards and loans head at HSBC.

Mani also previously worked at Lloyds and Capital One and “has a proven track record of significantly growing businesses as well as leading business turnarounds,” Citi noted in the announcement. Mani will relocate to Singapore in July.

Meanwhile Sergio Zanatti, the current Asia regional cards and personal loans, will be taking over as head of lending for the US consumer business. He will move to New York City to take over the role.

In addition, Fabio Fontainha is expanding his current role as Regional Head of Retail Banking. He will assume the additional responsibility for Asia mortgages as part of Citi’s wealth and mortgage strategy. In particular, Fontainha will be in charge with growing Citi’s wealth management business, which the bank has identified as a key strategic growth pillar for the next 5-10 years.