Cover and table of contents

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

☒ ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d)

OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the Fiscal Year Ended

December 31, 2021

☐ TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d)

OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the Transition Period From

(Not Applicable)

Commission File Number 001-36636

(Exact name of the registrant as specified in its charter)

Delaware						05-0412693
(State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation or Organization)						(I.R.S. Employer Identification Number)

One Citizens Plaza, Providence, RI 02903

(Address of principal executive offices, including zip code)

(203) 900-6715

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Title of each class			Trading symbol(s)			Name of each exchange on which registered
Common stock, $0.01 par value per share			CFG			New York Stock Exchange
Depositary Shares, each representing a 1/40th interest in a share of 6.350% Fixed-to-Floating Rate Non-Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock, Series D			CFG PrD			New York Stock Exchange
Depositary Shares, each representing a 1/40th interest in a share of 5.000% Fixed-Rate Non-Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock, Series E			CFG PrE			New York Stock Exchange

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:

None

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. ☑ Yes ☐ No

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. ☐ Yes ☑ No

Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports) and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. ☑ Yes ☐ No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). ☑ Yes ☐ No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act:

Large accelerated filer			☑			Accelerated filer			☐
Non-accelerated filer			☐			Smaller reporting company			☐
						Emerging growth company			☐

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☑

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). ☐ Yes ☑ No

The aggregate market value of voting stock held by nonaffiliates of the Registrant was 19,475,179,748 (based on the June 30, 2021 closing price of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. common shares of $45.87 as reported on the New York Stock Exchange). There were 422,141,584 shares of Registrant’s common stock ($0.01 par value) outstanding on January 28, 2022.

Documents incorporated by reference

Portions of Citizens Financial Group, Inc.’s proxy statement to be filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission in connection with Citizens Financial Group, Inc.’s 2022 annual meeting of stockholders (the “Proxy Statement”) are incorporated by reference into Part III hereof. Such Proxy Statement will be filed within 120 days of Citizens Financial Group, Inc.’s fiscal year ended December 31, 2021.

						Table of Contents
									Page
			Glossary of Acronyms and Terms						2
			Forward-looking Statements						5
			Part I.
			Item 1. Business						6
			Item 1A. Risk Factors						21
			Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments						35
			Item 2. Properties						35
			Item 3. Legal Proceedings						35
			Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures						35
			Part II.
			Item 5. Market for Registrant's Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities						35
			Item 6. Reserved						36
			Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations						37
			Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk						79
			Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data						80
			Consolidated Balance Sheets						86
			Consolidated Statements of Operations						87
			Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income						88
			Consolidated Statements of Changes in Stockholders’ Equity						89
			Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows						90
			Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements						91
			Item 9. Changes in and Disagreements With Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure						151
			Item 9A. Controls and Procedures						151
			Item 9B. Other Information						151
			Item 9C. Disclosure Regarding Foreign Jurisdictions that Prevent Inspections						151
			Part III.
			Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance						151
			Item 11. Executive Compensation						152
			Item 12. Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters						152
			Item 13. Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence						152
			Item 14. Principal Accountant Fees and Services						152
			Part IV.
			Item 15. Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules						152
			Item 16. Form 10-K Summary						156
			Signatures						157

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GLOSSARY OF ACRONYMS AND TERMS

The following is a list of common acronyms and terms we regularly use in our financial reporting:

AACL						Adjusted Allowance for Credit Losses
ACL						Allowance for Credit Losses: Allowance for Loan and Lease Losses plus Allowance for Unfunded Lending Commitments
Acquisitions						Refers to acquisitions including Willamette Management Associates, Inc. and JMP Group LLC
AFS						Available for Sale
ALLL						Allowance for Loan and Lease Losses
ALM						Asset and Liability Management
AOCI						Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss)
ARRC						Alternative Reference Rates Committee
ASU						Accounting Standards Update
ATM						Automated Teller Machine
Bank Holding Company Act						The Bank Holding Company Act of 1956
Board or Board of Directors						The Board of Directors of Citizens Financial Group, Inc.
bps						Basis Points
Capital Plan Rule						Federal Reserve Regulation Y Capital Plan Rule
CARES Act						The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act
CBNA						Citizens Bank, National Association
CCAR						Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review
CCB						Capital Conservation Buffer
CCMI						Citizens Capital Markets, Inc.
CECL						Current Expected Credit Losses (ASU 2016-13, Financial Instruments—Credit Losses (Topic 326): Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments)
CET1						Common Equity Tier 1
CEO						Chief Executive Officer
CET1 capital ratio						Common Equity Tier 1 capital divided by total risk-weighted assets as defined under the U.S. Basel III Standardized approach
CFPB						Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
CFTC						Commodity Futures Trading Commission
Citizens or CFG or the Company, we, us, or our						Citizens Financial Group, Inc. and its Subsidiaries
CLO						Collateralized Loan Obligation
CLTV						Combined Loan-to-Value
CMO						Collateralized Mortgage Obligation
COVID-19 pandemic						Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic
CRA						Community Reinvestment Act
CRE						Commercial Real Estate
DE&I						Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
DIF						Deposit Insurance Fund
Dodd-Frank Act						The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010
EAD						Exposure at Default
Elevated cash						Cash above targeted operating levels
EPS						Earnings Per Share
ERISA						Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974
ESPP						Employee Stock Purchase Program

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EVE						Economic Value of Equity
Exchange Act						The Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Fannie Mae (FNMA)						Federal National Mortgage Association
FASB						Financial Accounting Standards Board
FCA						Financial Conduct Authority
FDIA						Federal Deposit Insurance Act
FDIC						Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
FFIEC						Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council
FHA						Federal Housing Administration
FHLB						Federal Home Loan Bank
FICO						Fair Isaac Corporation (credit rating)
FINRA						Financial Industry Regulation Authority
FRB or Federal Reserve						Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and, as applicable, Federal Reserve Bank(s)
Freddie Mac (FHLMC)						Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation
FTE						Fully Taxable Equivalent
FTP						Funds Transfer Pricing
GAAP						Accounting Principles Generally Accepted in the United States of America
GDP						Gross Domestic Product
GLBA						Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999
Ginnie Mae (GNMA)						Government National Mortgage Association
GRI						Global Reporting Initiative
GSE						Government Sponsored Entity
HSBC						HSBC Bank U.S.A., N.A.
HSBC branch acquisition						Acquisition of 80 East Coast branches and national online business from HSBC
HTM						Held To Maturity
ICE						Intercontinental Exchange
Investors						Investors Bancorp, Inc. and its subsidiaries
Investors acquisition agreement						Citizens’ agreement and plan of merger, dated July 28, 2021, with Investors Bancorp, Inc.
JMP						JMP Group LLC
Last-of-Layer						Last-of-layer is a fair value hedge of the interest rate risk of a portfolio of similar prepayable assets whereby the last dollar amount within the portfolio of assets is identified as the hedged item
LHFS						Loans Held for Sale
LGD						Loss Given Default
LIBOR						London Interbank Offered Rate
LIHTC						Low Income Housing Tax Credit
LTV						Loan to Value
MBS						Mortgage-Backed Securities
MD&A						Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
Mid-Atlantic						District of Columbia, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia
Midwest						Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio
Modified AACL Transition						The Day-1 CECL adoption entry booked on January 1, 2020 to ACL plus 25% of subsequent CECL ACL reserve build through December 31, 2021
Modified CECL Transition						The Day-1 CECL adoption entry booked on January 1, 2020 to retained earnings plus 25% of subsequent CECL ACL reserve build through December 31, 2021

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MSRs						Mortgage Servicing Rights
NCOs						Net charge-offs
New England						Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont
NM						Not meaningful
NSFR						Net Stable Funding Ratio
OCC						Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
OCI						Other Comprehensive Income (Loss)
OFAC						Office of Foreign Assets Control
Operating Leverage						Period-over-period percent change in total revenue, less the period-over-period percent change in noninterest expense
OTC						Over the Counter
Parent Company						Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (the Parent Company of Citizens Bank, National Association and other subsidiaries)
PD						Probability of Default
peers or peer regional banks						Comerica, Fifth Third, Huntington, KeyCorp, M&T, PNC, Regions, Truist and U.S. Bancorp
PPP						The U.S. Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program
REIT						Real estate investment trust
ROTCE						Return on Average Tangible Common Equity
RPA						Risk Participation Agreement
RWA						Risk-weighted Assets
SASB						Sustainability Accounting Standards Board
SBA						United States Small Business Administration
SCB						Stress Capital Buffer
SEC						United States Securities and Exchange Commission
SOFR						Secured Overnight Financing Rate
SVaR						Stressed Value at Risk
Tailoring Rules						Rules establishing risk-based categories for determining prudential standards for large U.S. and foreign banking organizations, consistent with the Dodd-Frank Act, as amended by the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief and Consumer Protection Act
TBAs						To-Be-Announced Mortgage Securities
TDR						Troubled Debt Restructuring
Tier 1 capital ratio						Tier 1 capital, which includes Common Equity Tier 1 capital plus non-cumulative perpetual preferred equity that qualifies as additional tier 1 capital, divided by total risk-weighted assets as defined under the U.S. Basel III Standardized approach
Tier 1 leverage ratio						Tier 1 capital, which includes Common Equity Tier 1 capital plus non-cumulative perpetual preferred equity that qualifies as additional tier 1 capital, divided by quarterly adjusted average assets as defined under the U.S. Basel III Standardized approach
Total capital ratio						Total capital, which includes Common Equity Tier 1 capital, tier 1 capital and allowance for credit losses and qualifying subordinated debt that qualifies as tier 2 capital, divided by total risk-weighted assets as defined under the U.S. Basel III Standardized approach
USDA						United States Department of Agriculture
VA						United States Department of Veterans Affairs
VaR						Value at Risk
VIE						Variable Interest Entities
Willamette						Willamette Management Associates, Inc.

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FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This document contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Statements regarding potential future share repurchases and future dividends as well as the potential effects of the COVID-19 disruption on our business, operations, financial performance and prospects, are forward-looking statements. Also, any statement that does not describe historical or current facts is a forward-looking statement. These statements often include the words “believes,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “estimates,” “intends,” “plans,” “goals,” “targets,” “initiatives,” “potentially,” “probably,” “projects,” “outlook,” “guidance” or similar expressions or future conditional verbs such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “would,” and “could.”

Forward-looking statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of management, and on information currently available to management. Our statements speak as of the date hereof, and we do not assume any obligation to update these statements or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those contained in such statements in light of new information or future events. We caution you, therefore, against relying on any of these forward-looking statements. They are neither statements of historical fact nor guarantees or assurances of future performance. While there is no assurance that any list of risks and uncertainties or risk factors is complete, important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements include the following, without limitation:

• Negative economic and political conditions that adversely affect the general economy, housing prices, the job market, consumer confidence and spending habits which may affect, among other things, the level of nonaccrual assets, charge-offs and provision expense;

• The rate of growth in the economy and employment levels, as well as general business and economic conditions, and changes in the competitive environment;

• Our ability to implement our business strategy, including the cost savings and efficiency components, and achieve our financial performance goals, including through the integration of Investors and the HSBC branches;

• The COVID-19 disruption and its effects on the economic and business environments in which we operate;

• Our ability to meet heightened supervisory requirements and expectations;

• Liabilities and business restrictions resulting from litigation and regulatory investigations;

• Our capital and liquidity requirements under regulatory capital standards and our ability to generate capital internally or raise capital on favorable terms;

• The effect of changes in interest rates on our net interest income, net interest margin and our mortgage originations, mortgage servicing rights and mortgages held for sale;

• Changes in interest rates and market liquidity, as well as the magnitude of such changes, which may reduce interest margins, impact funding sources and affect the ability to originate and distribute financial products in the primary and secondary markets;

• The effect of changes in the level of checking or savings account deposits on our funding costs and net interest margin;

• Financial services reform and other current, pending or future legislation or regulation that could have a negative effect on our revenue and businesses;

• A failure in or breach of our operational or security systems or infrastructure, or those of our third party vendors or other service providers, including as a result of cyber-attacks;

• An inability to complete the Investors acquisition, or changes in the current anticipated timeframe, terms or manner of such acquisition;

• Greater than expected costs or other difficulties related to the integration of our business and that of Investors and the relevant HSBC branches;

• The inability to retain existing Investors or HSBC clients and employees following the closing of the Investors and HSBC branch acquisitions;

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• The occurrence of any event change or other circumstance that could give rise to the right of one or both parties to terminate the agreement to acquire Investors; and

• Management’s ability to identify and manage these and other risks.

In addition to the above factors, we also caution that the actual amounts and timing of any future common stock dividends or share repurchases will be subject to various factors, including our capital position, financial performance, risk-weighted assets, capital impacts of strategic initiatives, market conditions and regulatory and accounting considerations, as well as any other factors that our Board of Directors deems relevant in making such a determination. Therefore, there can be no assurance that we will repurchase shares from or pay any dividends to holders of our common stock, or as to the amount of any such repurchases or dividends. Further, statements about the effects of the COVID-19 disruption on our business, operations, financial performance and prospects may constitute forward-looking statements and are subject to the risk that the actual impacts may differ, possibly materially, from what is reflected in those forward-looking statements due to factors and future developments that are uncertain, unpredictable and in many cases beyond our control, including the scope and duration of the pandemic, actions taken by governmental authorities in response to the pandemic, and the direct and indirect impact of the pandemic on our customers, third parties and us. Statements about the Investors and HSBC branch acquisitions also constitute forward-looking statements and are subject to the risk that actual results could be materially different from those expressed in those statements, including if the Investors transaction is not consummated in a timely manner or at all, or if integration of the acquisitions is more costly or difficult than expected.

More information about factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements can be found under Item 1A “Risk Factors”.

PART I