Citigroup and Morgan Stanley told employees not to travel internationally for nonessential business, expanding earlier restrictions in Wall Street's latest responses to the spread of the coronavirus.
Both banks said critical trips must be preapproved. At Morgan Stanley, domestic U.S. travel isn't restricted, "though we will continue to closely monitor the situation," according to an internal memo seen by Bloomberg.
Citigroup said exceptions can only be granted by its executive-management team, according to an emailed statement. The bank, which does business in more than 160 countries, previously restricted travel to a select number of countries that had reported outbreaks, including Italy and China.
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Iran and South Korea reported a surge in infections and the European Union set up a special team to deal with the outbreak as cases rose from Italy to Spain. Global cases jumped to about 89,000, with the death toll at 3,044. New York City, Brussels and Berlin reported their first cases.
Morgan Stanley said it might expand work-from-home requirements in coming days. "Individuals should bear this in mind when considering personal travel," the firm said in the memo from Jen Easterly, global head of the fusion resilience center, Morgan Stanley's crisis-response operation.
Business Insider reported Morgan Stanley's new restrictions earlier Monday.
