Citigroup plans to cut 53,000 jobs

Citigroup, widely seen as the sickest Wall Street bank, will make some of the most severe cuts in the history of U.S. business – 53,000 jobs – as it tries to slash costs and get back to basics before it’s too late.

Those figures are posted on the company’s Web site as part of a town hall presentation that CEO Vikram Pandit is giving today to employees in New York.  According to AP, the Citigroup spokesman said the cuts would be across the board. It is not known how many of those job will be in Orange County.

The cuts, which will leave Citi about 20 percent smaller, are the latest step in a stunning remaking of the American banking landscape since the financial meltdown, an upheaval that has included the demise of storied investment houses and the conversion of others into commercial banks.

Citigroup CEO Vikram Pandit met with employees Monday and laid out the bank’s strategy in stark terms: “We are a bank. What does a bank do? A bank takes deposits and puts them to work by investing and making loans.”