U.S.A. –-(Ammoland.com)- Citigroup plans on regulating firearms through controlling sales to persons under the age of 21, bump stocks, and “high-capacity magazines” according to an internal memo that was sent to Firearm Rack by an anonymous source.
The memo was penned by CEO of Citigroup, Mike Corbat detailing their new U.S. Commercial Firearms Policy details several guidelines that firearm retailers MUST follow if they would like to do business with Citigroup. If they decline to adhere to the new policies, Citi will “work with them to transition their business away from Citi.”
In my opinion, this new policy that Citi has distributed will undoubtedly change commerce surrounding firearms even if the retailer does not use Citigroup’s services. How many smaller banking institutions will follow the lead of the Keep in mind that Citi is regulating entirely legal products for a political end goal of forcing the firearms industry to adopt gun control measures that have been voted on by no one, bypassing all public comment.
Does Citi have the right to regulate their services? Sure. Being a private company they have the right to do business where they like and turn away retailers that they do not wish to do business with.
But just because they can, should they?
One of the more chilling statements in Mike’s memo is where he states “Citi is ready to do our part to help our country move in that direction.” When referring to changes in U.S. firearms laws. When an entity is so large that they are dictating policies that affect rights that Americans are guaranteed, there is something wrong with the system in my humble opinion.
The response to Citigroup's policy change announcement on Twitter has been overwhelmingly negative, as it should be. ~ AmmoLand News
Today we announced a new U.S. Commercial Firearms Policy that centers around current firearms sales best practices that will guide those we do business with as a firm. More on our blog: https://t.co/sreRrPGCBg
— Citi (@Citi) March 22, 2018
How should we respond to Citigroup? Email Mike Corbat ([email protected]ssmb.com) and tell him how you feel about the new policy in the MOST RESPECTFUL WAY POSSIBLE. Do not curse, do not threaten, and do not troll him. We have to be respectful or risk being labeled crazy gun people.
I reached out to Citigroup for comment and have not received a response at this time.
If you care to read the memo, it is posted below:
From: MikeCorbat <[email protected]>
Date: Thursday, March 22, 2018 at 10:01 AM
Subject: Announcing Our U.S. Commercial Firearms PolicyMessage From Mike Corbat
Dear Colleagues,
Over the last several weeks, I have had many conversations with clients, colleagues and friends who hold a range of opinions on the regulation of firearms in the U.S. It is clear to me that most people believe there are areas of agreement and practical changes we can make to find common ground.
Citi is ready to do our part to help our country move in that direction. Today, I am proud to announce a new U.S. Commercial Firearms Policy that promotes the adoption of current best practices regarding the sale of firearms. The policy was designed to respect the rights of responsible gun owners while helping to keep firearms out of the wrong hands.
This policy will apply across the firm, including to small business, commercial and institutional clients, as well as credit card partners, whether co-brand or private label. Under the policy, we will require new retail sector clients or partners to adhere to these current best practices: (1) they don’t sell firearms to someone who hasn’t passed a background check, (2) they restrict the sale of firearms for individuals under 21 years of age, and (3) they don’t sell bump stocks or high-capacity magazines.
It is clear our current clients care about these issues as well, and we believe we can make meaningful progress together. We have already begun to engage with them in the hope that they will adopt these best practices over the coming months. If they opt not to, we will respect their decision and work with them to transition their business away from Citi.
We have few relationships with companies that manufacture firearms. For those that do, we will be initiating due diligence conversations to better understand the products they make, what markets and retailers they sell to, and the sales practices of those retailers to ensure adherence with the best practices outlined above. We will apply the same due diligence screening to potential clients going forward.
We know that our efforts cannot lead to real change unless we work with others. To that end, we are initiating a dialogue within the financial services industry and with other stakeholders to understand whether there are additional technology solutions or voluntary standards that can be enacted. We know a solution may not come quickly, but we are committed to the conversation.
As an avid outdoorsman and responsible gun owner, I know that some will find our policy too strict while others will find it too lenient. We don’t have the perfect solution to supporting our Constitution while keeping our children and grandchildren safe. Best practices are going to continue to change, and we understand the limitations of our efforts. But we shouldn’t let that stop us from doing our part.
– Mike
About Patrick R.
Patrick is a firearms enthusiast that values the quest for not only the best possible gear setup, but also pragmatic ways to improve his shooting skills across a wide range of disciplines. He values truthful, honest information above all else and had committed to cutting through marketing fluff to deliver the truth. You can find the rest of his work on FirearmRack.com as well as on the YouTube channel Firearm Rack or Instagram at @thepatrickroberts.
I will be going back to cash and dropping Amazon, Citi card, Costco, Macy’s, Best buy, NTB, Sears and Wawa cards
as of today 03-24-18
I love the sound of crunching Citi (Home Depot) cards in the shredder….not to be confused with the smell of napalm in the morning…well maybe…
This CEO tells it like it is, either do it our way or not at all. Who died and appointed him as king? There is no sense in dealing with this liberal outfit. I don’t but anyone who does do business with them get away as fast as you can. There are a lot of credit unions that would be happy to accept your money and interest through them has been higher than banks throughout the recession.
Here’s my Home Depot cancellation notice:
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You can cancel my Home Depot credit card IMMEDIATELY. You may or may not know why but here is the reason. Once you dump Citi as the bank behind this credit card, I MAY consider getting a replacement. I will pay the balance of any charges that are current . The card has already been shredded in my shredder.
Bye Bye
MPB
Proud NRA member
Dont Tread on ME
========
I just loved the crunching of that POS credit card…..;-)
To hell with Citicorp and their executives too. The arrogant SOB should be drawn and quartered.
For what it’s worth, I have a somewhat unique perspective as an avid firearms enthusiast, an obsessive student of ballistics, arms/armor, and coincidentally as a liberal. We might not agree on many social issues, but we definitely see eye to eye on the second amendment. One of the reasons I enjoy the posts on here, is that they are typically far more objective, and well reasoned with far fewer conservative catch phrases, and calls to arms. It may seem naive, but I think like many controversial issues in our country we have to make an effort to avoid connecting partisan… Read more »
To the greatest extent possible, do not patronize CITI. Cancel or quit using their credit cards for openers. Oummight also contact business owners stablishments. Using their credit cards gives them money, cut that money off. Let’s then see what happens, when money flow is eliminated or reduced. Individuals are not powerless.
When Banks (Who America Bailed out with their Retirement funds) decide to limit America’s Civil Liberties, We as AMericans can Limit theirs. Our voice is money. Stop giving it to them and watch what happens. Stop saving with them and see how they react. Our Power is as Americans. Theirs is with threats and Regulations against Us.
In 2013, “Operation Choke Point” provided an excuse for left leaning banks & financial institutions to restrict financial transactions of gun sellers and those in related industries. Since the new administration has now rolled back that illegal program, these same banking/financial institutions are now looking to re-enact restrictions on their own. I suspect Citi Bank is just the first to publicly announce their position and if there is no visible fall out, others may follow their lead. I personally cut ties with Citi Bank years ago and would recommend all freedom loving americans to move their accounts to competing banks.
We count on our 18-21 year olds to enlist in the military.It is mostly conservatives and few liberals who sign up to defend their nation.If they told the recruiters no enlistment until my country lifts the age restrictions on being able to purchase all firearms.3 months tops it would change.
Instead of all of us wailing like a bunch of incoherent impotents we should all band together. Someone research and compile a list of business names and contact addresses CITI GROUP is connected with. Make that list readily available. Everyone receiving that list kindly and clearly inform each business that due to their reliance on CITI GROUP we cannot and will not, to the best of our ability, do business with them.
Hitting CITI from behind is far better than an un-orchestrated mob scene of off the wall comments.
That’s a great idea! Please – go for it; compile the list and share with everyone!! I’ll back what you find.
Here’s a list of all Citi affiliates:
https://www.citi.com/CRD/html/Citi_Affiliates.html
I cancelled my Home Depot card this morning. Got the list from Ammoland’s previous post.
Another liberal leaning company thinking that they Have the answers to a hot button issue , has ties to the Clintons and other suit wearing crooks , they think they’re doing something noble but no , don’t they realize that big government will take over all businesses when they strip you of your gun rights and you Have no means to protect yourself or your business ,stick to what you know and leave our constitutional rights to us quit thinking you know what’s best for e everbody else you sound like the American hating left , and by the way… Read more »
How Short Citi-Bank’s memories are. Let us not forget nine years ago when the United States Bailed out Citi-Bank. Our children can fight for this country at age of 18, but they have the audacity to dictate business policy against the Second Amendment? “Doing What Feels Good” wrong signals, Mr. Mike Corbat!……………. Historical article quote; BUSINESS NEWS NOVEMBER 23, 2008 / 6:28 PM / 9 YEARS AGO Citigroup gets massive government bailout Dan Wilchins, Jonathan Stempel 7 MIN READ NEW YORK (Reuters) – The U.S. rescued Citigroup Inc, agreeing to shoulder most losses on about $306 billion of the bank’s… Read more »
Citibank is going to have a long conversation with DoD. They currently hold the contract for government travel cards, and are my only interaction with the company. However this is clearly a moral contradiction. A strong individual defense, and a strong national defense are not discrete ideals. The current military, and our most recent war veterans are clearly the gestation of the entire tactical culture that is so proliferated in the self defense marketing platform. By essentially punishing their civilian customers for being involved in this market, and at the same time profiting off the military’s travel need, they ARE… Read more »
Fun, there are firearms ads all through this report! The goal of a Democratic Republic is to prevent big business from manipulating politics! I have a citizen card. Would any card company like to replace it for me? LOL BOYCOTT CITI! See, we can make a difference! As head Rabbi of Jewish Yeshua University, I am announcing that every student MUST have firearms training! Every witness in outreach for god”s name is a potential first responder. In a shooter situatiin, each of us could end it immediately! People whom have experience, have the most fear! With training, fear leaves, and… Read more »
Everyone who gets credit offers from Citi and their business partners should fill the “postage paid” return envelope with junk mail and maybe local gun ads. Get it as heavy as possible so they have to pay extra return costs.
Excellent idea !! LOL
I think you can still attach the prepaid envelope to a box and they will forced to pay the extra shipping. The box will let you add all kinds of gun adds,old magazines, and some rocks to really add to the weight and shipping bill.
Repo:
Not certain, but I do not think that idea works anymore.
All my Citi Cards are gone and I moved them to another bank, gotta love free enterprise!
A lot of what is going on,is like president Washington dealt with.An Appeal to Heaven is needed now. Still have my cb.and ham radio.
I would be in favor of supporting any regulatory legislation that comes through at this point. If the Banking industry has no faith in the individuals of this country and feel that we are untrustworthy I would suspect it is because they understand that people as a whole can not be trusted, inclusive of them selves. History has shown that the banking industry has skimmed our dollars at each and every turn with fees sometimes later discovered as illegal and should be regulated by the government as stringent as possible.
Please support banking regulations
BANKS are owned, operated by the most untrustworthy, backstabbing type of people, it is the nature of their business. Mike Corbat, sissybank corporate big head just showed his hand…. Gun owners need to look elsewhere for their banking needs. ANY company that follows sissybanks lead should be dropped by legal gun owners. I heard on the leftist news this morning that the lib/left/Dem hollywood assholes are marching on Washington for gun control. Ironic, Ariana Grande is one of them…. SHE stated on video that she HATES AMERICANS, look it up !……… These are the ones that want law abiding citizens… Read more »
This is a heck of a risk for any big business. With 150 million legl gun owners in the country, to risk virtually half of the country refusing to do business with your business could be cause for a stock crash or bankruptcy on the part of that business. Maybe they should check with the NFL how that has worked out for them with the National Anthem protests. When all gun owners band together and stop using these businesses then their tune will change or they won’t exist.
Thought you might like to know I got right to it, thanks for the heads up! To Citi Bank Blog; After more than twenty years and thousands in business I’m done. Your “corporate responsibility” is clearly based on ignorance and or lefty politics. More than 100 million firearms owners disagree with your move, and 2 million defensive firearms uses per year prove the case. Responsibility is actually parents teaching their children how and when to fight back, with or without firearms, of course persons of small stature benefit most using the ” great equalizer”. Those teachers who refuse to fight… Read more »
I am a proud American and gun owner. I am very concerned when big finance companies are involved in trying to remove my God given and Constitutional rights to purchase and own a firearm. If our young men and women age 18 are old enough to fight and die for this Great Country, then they are also old enough to purchase a firearm if they qualify. A few years ago Citigroup got a massive bailout with tax payer money. I am a United States Citizen and a tax payer. I do not want you or any big finance group restricting… Read more »
Ok filing for my cash back from my citi card then it goes.
Tried to email Mike Corbat to tell him Im cutting up my Citi VISA card, but that email address just gets bounced back.
Hmmm, looks like I need to check my wallet for Citi type credits cards and send them to my shredder……
Screw you CITI Bank !
Take Your Cards and shove it .