Citigroup sent out this Tweet:
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
This is the full text of Citigroup’s new policy (relevant text in bold):
For too many years, in too many places, our country has seen acts of gun violence that have resulted in heartbreaking losses. We are all too familiar with them and there is no need to recount them here.
Over the same amount of time, we have waited for our grief to turn into action and see our nation adopt common-sense measures that would help prevent firearms from getting into the wrong hands. That action has sadly never come and as the weeks pass after the most recent mass shooting, it appears we are stuck in the same cycle of tragedy and inaction.
As a society, we all know that something needs to change. And as a company, we feel we must do our part.
Today, our CEO announced Citi is instituting a new U.S. Commercial Firearms Policy. It is not centered on an ideological mission to rid the world of firearms. That is not what we seek. There are millions of Americans who use firearms for recreational and other legitimate purposes, and we respect their Constitutional right to do so.
But we want to do our part as a company to prevent firearms from getting into the wrong hands. So our new policy centers around current firearms sales best practices that will guide those we do business with as a firm.
Under this new policy, we will require new retail sector clients or partners to adhere to these 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. 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. It doesn’t impact the ability of consumers to use their Citi cards at merchants of their choice.
We know our clients also care about these issues and we have 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 on the subject to better understand what products they make, what markets and retailers they sell to and what sales practices those retailers follow to ensure adherence to the best practices outlined above. This same due diligence screening will apply to potential clients going forward.
These common-sense sales practices already have widespread public support according to recent polling and they are easy to implement. Some, like Walmart, have gone even further.
We recognize that we don’t have all the answers and that existing technology in our industry doesn’t allow for a more targeted approach at points of sale. For that reason, we would like to convene those in the financial services industry and other stakeholders to tackle these challenges together and see what we can do. This approach has worked well in areas such as sustainability, where the Equator Principles ushered in a new era of environmentally and socially responsible financing practices. We hope to leverage collective action to encourage responsible practices by all who sell firearms. As best practices evolve, we will update our policies accordingly.
We know that the actions we are taking today will invite passion on both sides. We don’t have the perfect solution but we have come to the conclusion that we must do our part to keep guns out of the hands of those who wish to do harm. And we hope our actions help achieve that vital goal.
Yes, you read that correctly. No more bump stock, high capacity magazines (undefined), or sales to anybody under 21.
Citigroup wants to restrict gun sales to a standard higher than federal law.
Did CEO Michael Corbat, not read about Dick’s sales loss and stock devaluation?
Citigroup is publicly traded. Doesn’t the CEO with his $23 Million dollar salary owe his shareholders some fiduciary duty?
It’s not a question of if Citi’s stock will tumble, but by how far.
I guess there was a credit card company management dumb enough to throw away their share of a $13 Billion annual market.
It’s a good thing that my Cabela’s Club card is a Visa.
Crap. I have a Citibank Shell MasterCard and a Citibank MasterCard, both of which I’ve had for about 30 years. I’ve been enjoying that 1% back lately, but now I’m going to seriously consider dropping both.
The question is: how do I drop them and let them know why, other than just dropping them and having them go “Meh.”?
I’m in the same boat (ya, the one that had my guns in it when it sunk). I’m sending them an email and tommorow I will be calling!
Ask to talk to the retentions people. Then tell them exactly why.
There are a number of websites that can help you find an alternate, if not better, card. Checking earlier today for similar reasons, there are number out there that offer 1.5% back on anything you buy. If you want to use Amex, check out the Blue Cash Preferred card.
Unless there’s an annual fee, don’t drop them – just stop using them. See my comment below for the why’s, but basically it should cost Citi more money that way.
I hope the Russians and Chinese don’t hack the well written and well meaning bunch of BS. It’s something they’re going to do. I know North Korea had planned to do that. They’re mad because they wanted to be first. Oh, well.
If there is a market for something, there will always be people who will do business in that thing.
No successful business can afford to toss out a good part of a market- the gunowner credit card business they are going to lose is pretty big, but is not all of it. The bank that picks up that business will also pick up other financial transactions- home, auto, banking, business ect.
When the loss of business begins to show from the current rush to virtue signal, there will be quiet policy changes back to the previous status quo.
Ah, but by then it might be too late to recover the losses.
Firearms owners aren’t, as a group, noted for having particularly strong memories (Smith & Wesson, Ruger, and Cheaper than Dirt are all still in business, we’ll see about Springfield and Rock River). But a credit card membership is “sticky,” and as you note acts as a gateway for other transactions since you have an established relationship already.
To make this hurt, all gunowners need to do is to drop their cards now. Chances are most of us won’t be looking for a new card in a year or two, so it won’t matter nearly as much whether a big fraction of us have forgotten about it or not – they’ll automatically be out of the running because they’re no longer in the wallet.
We don’t need to do anything, as the market will correct things on it’s own.
That’s not quite true, I think.
The market is made of up of individuals – in other words, us – acting as each sees fit, and if we don’t change any of our behaviors because of what Citi (or Dick’s, or Springfield Armory, or whomever) did, then “the market” isn’t going to correct anything.
So, as part of “the market,” we need to do something.
My choice is to keep my Citibank-issued card, but stop using it for anything. Why? Well, if I close it, Citi gets no slice of my purchases. That’s also the case if I just stop using it, but Citi will continue to incur the costs of maintaining the account. Balance transfer offer? They pay for the paper and postage. Updated terms and conditions? Ditto. Fraudulent charges occur? I hope it doesn’t happen, but if it does they might have to eat at least some of them, and they have to pay all the manpower to get them backed out. And there’s no annual fee, so from a personal standpoint this makes zero difference to me.
If your favorite FFL can’t use Citi to buy or sell guns, they’re going to look for an alternative so they can stay in business.
If I can’t use Citi to buy mags, guns, or other items, then I’m going to start using an alternative. Because I’m not about to stop buying guns.
If find an alternative, there’s a good chance I’m going to use it for all my other purchases as well. Likewise the gunshop when they go to buy stuff.
That’s the mechanism where the market will punish that kind of stupidity.
Your logic is indeed accurate, but they won’t know WHY you did it. If the timing of this announcement comes hand-in-hand with a lot of dropped accounts, they will connect the dots. I don’t argue you can’t do what you say (not even rationally or morally, as opposed to “my edict”), but think dropping the card — especially with an explanation made to customer service) is a much more undisputable message.
That “long memory” thing sucks some times. It was one thing to hate on Ruger when Bill was in charge siding against 10 round mags, but he’s dead. The S&W management that caved to Clinton is long gone. Once a company like that changes management and does things differently (see S&W’s response to Blackrock https://gunfreezone.net/index.php/2018/03/08/this-is-how-to-make-a-corporate-statement/) they should be given another chance.
Remington is no longer owned by Cerberus/Freedom Group. It’s under new management with new priories. I hope they are able to come out of this reborn and that the gun community will give a 200 year old iconic American brand a second chance.
Let’s not throw the baby out with the management bathwater.
I agree to a large extent – in fact, I bought a S&W Performance Center 1911 as my first “higher-ish end” 1911, and their response to Blackrock was what nudged me over the decision vertex. Ruger makes AR-15s.
On the other hand, S&W revolvers still have Hillary holes, so there’s that.
That is just engineering. Tooling and design work is expensive and hard. If you are going to make a gun, it is most cost effective to make it 50 state legal. That means you have to comply with CA and MA requirements. The side effect is that people in free states still have CA/MA legal guns with extra features. That’s the nature of the beast.
we will require new retail sector clients or partners to adhere to these best practices: (1) they don’t sell firearms to someone who hasn’t passed a background check
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This is virtue signalling at its most retarded. Like ANY business in the USA can sell a gun without a BGC?
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