AP
Vikram Pandit, new Citigroup CEO, will keep the conglomerate's global focus.

Citigroup Inc said Friday it aims to shed about US$500 billion in assets and grow revenue by nine per cent over the next few years, as it tries to rebound from massive losses tied to deterioration in the mortgage and credit markets.

Investor-day presentation

The bank's plans to wind down its US$2.2 trillion in assets to approximately US$1.7 trillion were part of an investor-day presentation.

The news sent its shares up one per cent to US$24.55 in early trading Friday. The stock is down 17.5 per cent in 2008 and 55.1 per cent over the last 12 months.

Citigroup has been under heavy investor scrutiny over the past year as the value of its stock tumbled.

Many Citigroup holders have been angling for a large-scale overhaul of the company's structure. Those shareholders' hopes, however, are dwindling, with executives apparently largely sticking with the bank's current identity.

"We believe the right model is a global universal bank," said Vikram Pandit, who is nearing his five-month anniversary as the chief executive of the financial conglomerate.