Nikolas Sargeant
Shobhit Maini, who led Citigroup's digital assets team within its markets division, is leaving the banking giant after a 14-year tenure. According to a Bloomberg report on Monday, Maini is set to explore new entrepreneurial opportunities in the cryptocurrency sector.
A memo from Lee Smallwood, Citigroup's head of markets innovation, confirmed Maini's departure for "an entrepreneurial opportunity in the digital asset space." The bank has appointed Deepak Mehra, currently overseeing strategic investments for the markets division, to expand his role and lead the digital assets team.
During his time at Citigroup, Maini advocated for the coexistence of traditional and digital financial systems, emphasizing the need for interoperability among blockchain-based infrastructures. His departure comes as Citigroup continues to advance its position in the digital assets space.
Citigroup Pushes Forward with Tokenization and Digital Custody
The bank has been actively involved in several digital money and tokenization initiatives. Last year, Citigroup became the first digital custodian participant in the BondbloX Bond Exchange (BBX), a fractional bond exchange launched in 2020 to simplify bond investing.
Furthermore, Citigroup introduced Citi Token Services, a new offering designed for institutional clients. This service leverages distributed ledger technology to transform customer deposits into digital tokens, enabling instant global transfers and enhancing the bank's product offerings in the evolving digital asset landscape.
