Story 159
I was recruited from BofA’s Private Bank to Citi in the mid-2000s as part of a full team lift-out. It turned out to be the worst career decision I ever made. I went from working for an excellent female manager with strong colleagues to a place that felt completely artificial—like living inside The Truman Show. Nothing about it was real.
My boss was a petty tyrant who ruled through intimidation and humiliation, especially if we weren’t aggressively pushing structured notes on clients. Compliance was effectively nonexistent.
I ultimately walked away after my job was threatened because I refused to sell products to a client that clearly were not in their best interest. It’s worth noting that Fraser was running the Private Bank at the time. She bears responsibility for the culture that exists there—don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.