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The lawsuit recently filed against Citi Wealth is, unfortunately, a familiar tale. The company follows a well-established playbook: employees who raise concerns can expect retaliation.
I know because it happened to me.
Shortly after COVID, I reported a significant issue with a trading platform in the Private Bank. Months later, while I was on FMLA leave, a seven-figure trading loss occurred.
Despite the fact that I wasn’t near the building when it happened, my manager and members of Compliance colluded to pin the blame on me.
And, unsurprisingly, HR accepted the logic. Their argument was essentially that because I had identified and reported the issue, I should somehow also have prevented the loss from occurring. It makes no sense. I was fired.
The reality is that my report put the problem on record. When the issue resulted in a major loss, it exposed the fact that management had failed to address the risk after being warned. Instead of taking responsibility, they needed someone to blame.
So, I get why Citi is going after the complainant so hard – they need to bury this. What I don’t understand is why their regulators let them.