Citi Signs Private-Label Deal with Ford

Citigroup Inc., having recommitted to the retailer credit card business it tried in vain to sell, has signed a new deal with Ford Motor Co.

The New York bank said Thursday that it will provide consumer financing for car parts and service through 3,000 Ford dealerships. It is the latest in a string of similar deals for Citigroup, which in the last 18 months has renewed private-label card agreements with longstanding partners, including Sunoco Inc. and Sears Holdings Corp.

The bank has long specialized in issuing credit cards on behalf of retailers, who offer the cards to customers buying appliances or clothing. But those credit cards tend to be riskier and more loss-prone than mainstream credit cards, which people use every day.

Citigroup put its retailer credit card business up for sale in 2009 as chief executive Vikram Pandit began selling or closing down assets that the bank considered no longer part of its core banking operations.

But the company could not find a buyer willing to pay the price it wanted for the $45 billion portfolio. It said in October that the unit would be reincorporated into Citigroup's main banking operations on Jan. 1.

Citigroup also said Thursday that the unit, once known as Retail Partner Cards, would be renamed Citi Retail Services. The company said in a press release that the name change was meant to reflect the "breadth of products and services, including private-label credit cards, digital, mobile and loyalty solutions" that it offers.

"As a result of multiple partnership renewals, a strengthened and expanded leadership team and successful repositioning, the business is poised for profitable growth in the years ahead," Bill Johnson, head of the retail services unit, said in the release.

In November the bank reshuffled and hired managers for the card unit, including executives in business development and strategy, partnership management and marketing.