Citigroup Looking to Staff New Robotics Division  

Banking, say hello to robots… again.

Citigroup is in the process of hiring for a variety of new roles in their automation centers, designed to implement innovative robotic technology throughout the company, reports Business Insider.

A Citi spokesperson declined to comment, but Business Insider has learned that the Smart Automation Centre has been staffing branches in Budapest, London, New York, Singapore, and Tampa, among others.

The banking giant has posted ads across a plethora of online jobs boards, seeking employees to fill roles from junior engineers to senior vice presidents. The firm’s talent search engine has featured numerous ads to promote their new hiring frenzy.

“The Smart Automation Centre will be responsible for partnering with our businesses and functions across Citi to ensure all the elements are in place for the rapid deployment of Robotics and other related technologies,” details one ad.

Cultural criteria have been stressed more than technical expertise, as the roles require various levels of tech know-how. “Must be entrepreneurial, and thrive in environments with a blank canvas that will allow you to flex your intellectual muscle to contribute to building a strategy from the ground up,” said another ad.

Citi has also identified technological integration as a key part of its operation. The bank is searching for two or more senior program managers to work alongside multiple bank divisions to help pinpoint areas for technological assimilation, as well as educate the teams on the abilities of robotics and automation, per Business Insider

The New York-based bank is looking to find any opportunities for automation with its new center, and a recent report by FIS, the global financial technology provider, agrees with Citi’s approach. The report labeled automation a key growth prospect for Wall Street firms.

“Driven by margin pressures and regulatory changes, institutions across the financial services industry have been working to deepen the automation of the transaction lifecycle for the last few years,” the report said.

Citi is not the only firm taking robotic action. Last year, JPMorgan launched a ‘predictive recommendation engine’ to identify clients who should issue or sell equity. The success of that engine has propelled the bank to expand it into other divisions, reports Business Insider.

Furthermore, Goldman Sachs deputy chief financial officer Marty Chavez said in January that the bank is looking to automate investment banking tasks. He singled out the IPO process as 146 steps, many of which are “begging to be automated,” per MIT Technology Review.

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