Citigroup (C)

Auction Rate Securities (ARS) Settlement

        In the third quarter of 2008, Citigroup announced an agreement in principle with the New York Attorney General, under which it agreed to offer to purchase the failed ARS of its retail clients for par value. This agreement resulted in a $712 million loss being recorded during the third quarter.

        The loss comprises (1) fines of $100 million ($50 million to the State of New York and $50 million to the other state regulatory agencies); (2) an estimated contingent loss of $425 million, recorded at the time of the announcement, reflecting the estimated difference between the fair value and par value of the securities to be purchased; and (3) an incremental loss of $187 million due to the decline in value of these ARS since the time of announcement (mainly due to the widening spreads on municipal obligations).

        The securities Citigroup will be purchasing under this agreement have an estimated notional value of $6.2 billion, consisting of $4.2 billion of Preferred Share ARS, $1.8 billion of Municipal ARS and $0.2 billion of Student Loan ARS. The pretax losses of $712 million have been divided equally between S&B and GWM, both in North America.