NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Citi today announced the launch of Citi^® Virtual Card Accounts, its next generation payment solution, designed to provide institutions with greater security, flexibility and control. The new service generates unique "virtual" card numbers for transactions, allowing administrators to dynamically set spending and reconciliation controls on each virtual card account.

“This is an extremely innovative service that we can now offer to our clients worldwide. It provides our clients with real-time virtual card capabilities and strong controls over their transactions to help them further safeguard against risk, improve processes, and maximize their working capital,” said Paul Simpson, Citi’s Global Head of Treasury and Trade Solutions.

Better Control and Process Efficiency

Citi’s Virtual Card Account solution provides enhanced security and control in managing organizational expenses. Clients can generate a unique virtual card number and assign custom reference data for each transaction, making reconciliation fast and easy. Citi Virtual Card Accounts are a secure, electronic solution for post-invoice payments and "card-not-present transactions" made via the Internet, phone, or mail order. They can complement an organization’s existing commercial card program to better manage recurring business purchases or improve control of one-off strategic purchases.

Global Solution, Global Consistency

Citi has partnered with MasterCard to integrate their inControl virtual card platform into its core commercial cards processing systems to provide a single, consistent virtual card solution to its customers globally. Citi’s Virtual Card Account solution is available globally, with local currency issuance and settlement in nearly 50 countries. No other commercial card issuer provides this level of consistency and global reach.

Virtual Card Accounts are an extension of Citi’s innovative card solutions and further extend Citi’s Procure to Pay suite to include traditional and electronic payments via ACH, buyer-initiated purchasing cards, and now single-use virtual cards.

As a leading issuer of commercial cards globally, Citi is committed to providing solutions that offer greater control and transparency to help clients more effectively manage their payment processes. With acceptance at up to 29 million merchant locations and at 1.5 million ATMs in 140 countries, Citi offers the most widely accepted commercial cards available. For more information about Citi Virtual Card Accounts, go to:

www.virtualcard.citimanager.com.

Global Transaction Services, a division of Citi’s Institutional Clients Group offers integrated cash management, trade, and securities and fund services to multinational corporations, financial institutions and public sector organizations around the world. With a network spanning over 100 countries, Citi's Global Transaction Services supports over 65,000 clients. As of the 2^nd quarter of 2009, it held on average $288 billion in liability balances and $11.1 trillion in assets under custody.

About Citi

Citi, the leading global financial services company, has approximately 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 140 countries. Through Citicorp and Citi Holdings, Citi provides consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, and wealth management. Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com or www.citi.com.