Rachana Desai

Citi India

Citi began operations in India over a century ago in 1902 in Kolkata and today is a significant foreign investor in the Indian financial market with an employee strength of 21,000+ employees. As promoter-shareholder, Citi has played a leading role in establishing important market intermediaries such as depositories, credit bureau, clearing and payment institutions. Citi helped lay the foundation of the Indian software industry by establishing Citicorp Overseas Software Ltd. and Iflex Solutions Ltd.; it pioneered the ITES industry in financial services through Citigroup Global Services Ltd. (CGSL). Oracle acquired Iflex in 2005 and CGSL was acquired by Tata Consultancy Services in 2008. Citi India added two more green certified buildings to its office premises in 2012, and in 2013 moved its headquarters to The First International Financial Centre (FIFC), a world-class environmentally friendly building. In addition, Citi India, through its network of Citi Service Centres, has been a leading offshoring unit for Citigroup globally, providing employment opportunities in the areas of technology, processing, analytics and financial processes.