Item 1. BUSINESS

Citizens Financial Group, Inc. is headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island. We offer a broad range of retail and commercial banking products and services to individuals, small businesses, middle-market companies, large corporations and institutions. Our products and services are offered through more than 1,100 branches in 14 states and the District of Columbia and 105 retail and commercial non-branch offices, though certain lines of business serve national markets. At December 31, 2023, we had total assets of $222.0 billion, total deposits of $177.3 billion and total stockholders’ equity of $24.3 billion.

We are a BHC incorporated under Delaware state law in 1984 and our primary federal regulator is the FRB. CBNA is our banking subsidiary, whose primary federal regulator is the OCC.

Business Segments

We manage our business through two primary business segments: Consumer Banking and Commercial Banking. Our activities outside these segments are classified as Non-Core or Other. Non-Core includes our indirect auto and certain purchased consumer loan portfolios that we discontinued the origination of as part of our recently announced balance sheet optimization strategy. Other includes treasury activities, wholesale funding, the securities portfolio, community development assets, and other unallocated assets, liabilities, capital, revenues, provision (benefit) for credit losses and expenses, including income tax expense. For additional information regarding our business segments see the “Business Operating Segments” section of Item 7 and Note 26 in Item 8.

Consumer Banking Segment

Consumer Banking serves consumer customers and small businesses with annual revenues of up to $25 million, with products and services that include deposits, mortgage and home equity lending, credit cards, small business loans, wealth management and investment services largely across our 14-state traditional banking footprint. We also offer education and point-of-sale finance loans in addition to select digital deposit products nationwide. Citizens Private Bank, launched during 2023, integrates wealth management and banking services to serve high net-worth individuals and families, as well as businesses.

Consumer Banking operates a multi-channel distribution network with a workforce of approximately 5,300 branch colleagues, approximately 1,100 branches, including 187 in-store locations, and approximately 3,200 ATMs. Our network includes approximately 1,100 specialists covering lending, savings and investment needs as well as a broad range of small business products and services. We serve customers on a national basis through telephone service centers as well as through our online and mobile platforms where we offer customers the convenience of depositing funds, paying bills and transferring money between accounts and from person to person, as well as a host of other everyday transactions.

Commercial Banking Segment

Commercial Banking primarily serves companies and institutions with annual revenues of $25 million to more than $3.0 billion and strives to be a trusted advisor to our clients and preferred provider for their banking needs. We offer a broad complement of financial products and solutions, including lending and leasing, deposit and treasury management services, foreign exchange, interest rate and commodity risk management solutions, as well as syndicated loans, corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, and debt and equity capital markets capabilities.

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Commercial Banking is organized around client segments and their banking needs. Corporate Banking, Commercial Real Estate, Capital Markets and Advisory, and Treasury Solutions work together to understand client needs and provide comprehensive solutions to meet those needs. We acquire new clients through a coordinated approach to the market, leveraging deep industry knowledge in specialized banking groups and a geographic coverage model.

Corporate Banking serves commercial and industrial clients with annual gross revenues of $25 million to $500 million, and corporate clients with annual revenues of $500 million to more than $3.0 billion in the United States. In several areas, such as Aerospace, Defense and Government Services, Communications, Transportation and Logistics, Food and Restaurants, Human Capital Management, and Gaming we offer a more dedicated and tailored approach to better meet the unique needs of these client segments.

Commercial Real Estate provides customized debt capital solutions for middle-market operators, institutional developers, investors, and REITs. Commercial Real Estate provides financing for projects primarily in the multi-family, office, industrial, retail, healthcare and hospitality sectors.

Capital Markets and Advisory serves clients through key product groups including Corporate Finance, Capital Markets, and Global Markets. Corporate Finance provides advisory services to middle-market and mid-corporate clients, including mergers and acquisitions and capital structure advice. The team works closely with industry-sector specialists within capital markets to advise our clients. Corporate Finance also provides acquisition and follow-on financing for new and recapitalized portfolio companies of key sponsors, with services meeting the unique and time-sensitive needs of private equity firms, management companies and funds, and underwriting and portfolio management expertise for leveraged transactions and relationships. Capital Markets originates, structures and underwrites credit and equity facilities targeting middle-market, mid-corporate and private equity sponsors. They focus on offering value-added ideas to optimize their capital structures, including advising on and facilitating mergers and acquisitions, valuations, tender offers, financial restructurings, bond and equity underwriting, asset sales, divestitures and other corporate reorganizations and business combinations. Capital Markets also provides sales and trading across loan, fixed income and equity products, as well as other brokerage services including equity research. Global Markets provides foreign exchange, interest rate and commodities risk management services.

The Treasury Solutions product group supports Commercial Banking and certain small business clients with treasury management solutions, including domestic and international products and services related to receivables, payables, information reporting and liquidity management, as well as commercial credit cards and trade finance.

Business Strategy

Our mission is to help our customers, colleagues and communities reach their potential, and our vision is to become a top-performing bank distinguished by our customer-centric culture, mindset of continuous improvement, product innovation, and excellent capabilities. We strive to understand customer and client needs, so we can tailor advice and solutions to help make them more successful. Our business strategy is designed to maximize the full potential of our businesses, drive sustainable growth and enhance profitability. Our success rests on our ability to distinguish ourselves as follows:

Maintain a high-performing, customer-centric organization: We continually strive to enhance our “customer-first” culture by emphasizing the “voice of the customer” to deliver the best possible banking experience. We seek to deepen relationships with our customers by offering a full suite of products designed to meet their unique needs. In addition, we are taking talent management to the next level, with a goal of attracting, developing and retaining great people, while ensuring strong leadership, teamwork, and a sense of empowerment, accountability and urgency.

Develop differentiated value propositions to acquire, deepen, and retain core customer segments: Our focus is on select customer segments where we believe we are well positioned to compete. In Consumer Banking, we focus on serving mass affluent and affluent customers, small businesses and high-net-worth individuals and families. In 2023, we launched the Private Bank, which seeks to serve high-net-worth individuals and families, as well as commercial clients, to integrate our wealth management and banking services. In Commercial Banking, we focus on serving customers in the middle-market, mid-corporate, and select industry verticals. We have integrated the Investors acquisition and HSBC transaction and are focused on improving branch productivity and deepening relationships with those customers. By developing differentiated and targeted value propositions, building our fee-based businesses and developing innovative product solutions, we believe we can attract new customers, deepen relationships with existing customers and deliver an enhanced customer experience.

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Build excellent capabilities designed to help us stand out from competitors: We strive to deliver seamless, multi-channel experiences that allow customers to interact with us when, where and how they choose. We are enhancing capabilities in key areas including consumer lending, wealth, capital markets and payments. We are on a multi-year digital transformation journey across our Consumer and Commercial organizations to digitize end-to-end customer experiences and transform our marketing to drive consumer-direct acquisition in order to satisfy rapidly changing customer preferences. We strive to use advanced data analytics and artificial intelligence for personalization and to provide timely, insight-driven, tailored advice in order to deliver solutions to consumer and commercial customers throughout their lifecycles.

Operate with financial discipline and a mindset of continuous improvement to self-fund investments: We believe that continued focus on operational efficiency is critical to our future profitability and ability to continue to reinvest to drive future growth. We launched the first Tapping our Potential (“TOP”) initiative in 2014 and have launched additional programs in subsequent years. These programs are designed to transform how we operate and to improve the effectiveness, efficiency, and competitiveness of our franchise. Our TOP 8 program was completed in 2023, and we launched a TOP 9 program to allow us to continue to self-fund investments.

Prudently grow and optimize our balance sheet: We operate with a strong balance sheet with regard to capital and liquidity, coupled with a well-defined and prudent risk appetite. We continue to focus on thoughtfully growing our balance sheet by actively managing capital and resource allocations towards relationships-oriented growth to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns. Our goal is to be good stewards of our resources and continue to rigorously evaluate our execution.

Modernize our technology and operational models to improve delivery, organizational agility and speed to market: We are continuing to modernize our technology environment by strengthening our infrastructure and migrating applications to the cloud. We have deployed and scaled an agile operating model to improve our speed-to-market, deliver innovative products and services and strengthen collaboration across teams. We will also continue to actively incubate new innovative ideas and harness external innovation through FinTech partnerships to help deliver differentiated value-added experiences for our customers.

Embed risk management within our culture and operations: Given that the quality of our risk management program directly affects our ability to execute our strategy, we continue to work to further strengthen our risk management culture. Moreover, we are committed to continuously enhancing our processes and talent, and to making improvements in the platform including ongoing investments in risk technology and frameworks. These actions are designed to support and enhance our risk management capabilities and regulatory profile.

Competition

The financial services industry is highly competitive. Our branch footprint is predominantly in the New England, Mid-Atlantic and Midwest regions, though certain lines of business serve national markets. Within these markets, we face competition from community banks, super-regional and national financial institutions, credit unions, savings and loan associations, mortgage banking firms, consumer finance companies, securities brokerage firms, insurance companies, money market funds, hedge funds and private equity firms. Some of our larger competitors may make available to their customers a broader array of products, pricing and structure alternatives while some smaller competitors may have more liberal lending policies and processes. In addition, some of our competitors may not be subject to the same regulatory requirements as we are and, therefore, may have lower costs they can pass on to customers in the form of more favorable terms. Competition among providers of financial products and services continues to increase, with consumers having the opportunity to select from a growing variety of traditional and nontraditional alternatives. The ability of non-banking financial institutions, including FinTech companies, to provide services previously limited to commercial banks has also intensified competition.

In Consumer Banking, the industry has become increasingly dependent on and oriented toward technology-driven delivery systems, permitting transactions to be conducted through online and mobile channels. In addition, technology has lowered barriers to entry and made it possible for non-bank institutions to attract funds and provide lending and other financial products and services. The emergence of digital-only banking models has increased and we expect this trend to continue. Given their lower cost structure, these models are often, on average, able to offer higher rates on deposit products than retail banking institutions with a traditional branch footprint. The primary factors driving competition for loans and deposits are interest rates, fees charged, tailored value propositions to different customer segments, customer service levels, convenience, including branch locations and hours of operation, and the range of products and services offered.

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In Commercial Banking, we face competition in all our client segments from a variety of industry participants including traditional banking institutions, particularly large regional banks, as well as commercial finance companies, leasing companies, other non-bank lenders, and institutional investors, including collateralized loan obligation managers, hedge funds and private equity firms. Some larger competitors, including certain national banks that compete in our market area, may offer a broader array of products and, due to their asset size, may be in a position to hold more exposure on their balance sheet. We compete on a number of factors including providing innovative corporate finance solutions, quality of customer service and execution, range of products offered, price and reputation.

Human Capital Management

We believe that our long-term success depends on our ability to attract, develop, and retain a high-performing workforce. Our goal is to create an environment where colleagues can thrive personally and professionally and can maximize their potential. As of December 31, 2023, Citizens had 17,570 full-time equivalent employees, primarily across New England and the Mid-Atlantic. Our Board of Directors and its Compensation and Human Resources Committee are responsible for overseeing our human capital management strategy, with senior management providing regular updates to facilitate that oversight.

Leadership, Talent Development, and Talent Acquisition and Mobility

Our leaders are the catalysts to achieve the culture we want to foster. During 2023, we continued tailored leadership training and coaching for senior management following the detailed talent assessments conducted the prior year. We aim to equip all colleagues with the skills necessary to excel in their current roles and to build capabilities that will enable them to be highly valuable contributors in the future. We expanded our learning academies as well as badging and bootcamp programs focusing on critical skills such as Innovation, Agile, Next Gen Tech, Banking and Credit, and Data & Analytics. Our culture is one of continuous learning, which we believe is crucial for colleagues to thrive as part of our organization and to feel a sense of accomplishment and purpose.

The talent market remains competitive, particularly in emerging skill areas, and we implemented a strategy to fill critical gaps that utilizes a combination of external hiring in critical areas (e.g., technology, digital, cyber, risk, marketing, and data), a strong internal mobility program made possible by the expanded learning and development offerings provided to colleagues, and reliance on temporary workers for short-term or technical projects.

Employee Engagement

As part of our ongoing efforts to develop a high performing workforce and make Citizens a great place to work and build a career, we conduct an annual organizational health survey (“OHS”). The results of our survey are instrumental in helping management prioritize areas of change that are most important to colleagues. Survey results are used to refine our focus, address gaps, and strengthen efforts to improve our organizational effectiveness and colleague experience. Between our initial public offering and 2022, we had a 19-point increase in our overall survey score and achieved top quartile status within McKinsey’s global benchmarks. In 2023, with an eye toward continuing to evolve our strategy and culture, we transitioned to a new OHS tool. In 2023, 87% of colleagues participated in the OHS, which is our all-time highest participation rate.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

We foster a culture where all stakeholders feel respected, valued, and heard. Our DE&I strategy is focused on creating an environment of inclusion and belonging, building a more diverse workforce and evaluating the effectiveness of our initiatives.

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Development programs are designed to build a strong pipeline of emerging talent, including diverse talent, internally, and have been effective in increasing the development of our overall colleague base as well as increasing the number of women and people of color in senior leader roles. We also partner with external organizations to offer additional resources for reskilling and upskilling colleagues, including diverse colleagues. We acknowledge that there are opportunities to further increase the representation of women and people of color, particularly in leadership roles, and we continue to develop strong partnerships with business and community organizations to help identify diverse candidates for roles within every segment of our organization. In addition, we ensure that interview slates for senior openings include candidates with diverse backgrounds and perspectives. An internal dashboard is used to monitor our progress across multiple DE&I metrics. Information regarding our workforce demographics can be found in our Environmental Social Governance Report and on our website, which includes a link to our most recently filed EEO-1 report.

Various resources are used by management to understand what drives a sense of inclusion and belonging and to identify what actions will be effective in attracting and retaining diverse colleagues. Analytics are used to help prioritize initiatives, including responses to our OHS, which we segment by various colleague populations to provide additional insights. In addition, we have seven business resource groups (“BRGs”), which are integral to identifying and formulating solutions to DE&I issues that are most important to customers, colleagues, and the community. Our BRGs include Citizens WIN (Women’s Impact Network), Citizens Elev8 (Rising Professionals), Prism (Multicultural), Citizens Pride (LGBTQ+), Citizens Veterans, and Citizens Awake (Disability Awareness). In 2023, we launched an additional BRG, Caring for Citizens (Caregivers). Each BRG is sponsored by a member of the executive team and approximately 3,500 colleagues belonged to at least one BRG as of December 31, 2023. We also offer education programs focused on embedding inclusive behaviors in our culture designed for colleagues at all levels of leadership.

Health, Well-Being, and Flexibility

We prioritize the health and well-being of our colleagues and their loved ones. Our benefit programs are designed to support colleagues’ physical, mental, and financial well-being and we have added several resources in recent years. In an effort to greater support each colleague’s unique journey, we enhanced our partnership with our BRGs by providing subject matter experts to share their experience and expertise with all BRG members, as well as increasing awareness of available tools and resources.

In late 2022, we enhanced our Parental Leave Policy to six weeks of paid time off for all permanent colleagues who become parents; birth mothers are eligible for an additional 10 weeks, for a total of 16 weeks. In 2023, we increased paid bereavement leave, added several mental health resources, and provided each colleague an extra day of paid time-off to be used as a wellness day. In recognition of the impact of inflation on colleagues there were also no increases to colleague premiums, co-pays or deductibles for medical, dental, and vision coverage for 2023.

We continue to embrace flexibility and manage our hybrid workforce in a manner that ensures colleagues are working in ways that best support our customers, foster engagement and innovation, and maintain our company culture.

Fair and Equitable Compensation

We strive to compensate our colleagues fairly based on market data, experience, and performance, and we compare our compensation to other companies in our peer group as well as others in the financial services industry.

Part of our commitment to building and fostering a diverse, inclusive, high-performing culture includes ensuring our compensation and benefits are fair and competitive for all colleagues. We engage an independent third-party expert firm to conduct an annual pay equity analysis, accounting for factors that appropriately explain differences in pay such as role, performance, and experience. Additional information about this analysis, including our most recent results, can be found in our Environmental Social Governance Report and on our website.

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Sustainability

Our efforts relative to ESG matters are aligned with the needs, interests, and expectations of our stakeholders and are divided into four focus areas: Leading with Robust Corporate Governance, Driving Positive Climate Impact, Building the Workforce of the Future, and Fostering Strong Communities. These areas speak to the strengths of our company, align with our business priorities, and define how we can have an outsized impact on our business, society, and the planet.

In 2023, we announced a $50 billion Sustainable Finance Target, including $5 billion in green financing, by 2030. As part of this announcement, we committed to engage corporate clients in high-emitting sectors on climate-related topics, beginning with a target to engage 100% of our Oil & Gas clients by the end of 2024. In addition, we committed to achieving carbon neutrality by 2035.

For more details regarding ESG and other corporate responsibility matters, go to our website.

Regulation and Supervision

Our operations are subject to extensive regulation, supervision and examination under federal and state laws and regulations. These laws and regulations cover all aspects of our business, including lending practices, deposit insurance, customer privacy and cybersecurity, capital adequacy and planning, liquidity, safety and soundness, consumer protection and disclosure, permissible activities and investments, and certain transactions with affiliates. These laws and regulations are intended primarily for the protection of customers, depositors, the DIF and the banking system as a whole and not for the protection of shareholders or other investors. The discussion below outlines the material elements of selected laws and regulations applicable to us and our subsidiaries. Changes in applicable law or regulation, and in their interpretation and application by regulatory agencies and other governmental authorities, cannot be predicted, but may have a material effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.

We are subject to examinations by federal banking regulators, as well as the SEC, FINRA and various state insurance and securities regulators. In some cases, regulatory agencies may take supervisory actions that may not be publicly disclosed, and such actions may restrict or limit our activities or activities of our subsidiaries. As part of our regular examination process, regulators may advise us to operate under various restrictions as a prudential matter. We have periodically received requests for information from regulatory authorities at the federal and state level, including from banking, securities and insurance regulators, state attorneys general, federal agencies or law enforcement authorities, and other regulatory authorities, concerning our business practices. Such requests are considered incidental to the normal conduct of business. For a further discussion of how regulatory actions may impact our business, see Item 1A “Risk Factors.” For additional information regarding regulatory matters, see Note 25 in Item 8.

Overview

We are a BHC under the Bank Holding Company Act and have elected to be treated as a FHC under amendments to this Act as effected by GLBA. As such, we are subject to the supervision, examination and reporting requirements of the Bank Holding Company Act and the regulations of the FRB, including through the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. Under the system of “functional regulation” established under the Bank Holding Company Act, the FRB serves as the primary regulator of our consolidated organization. The OCC serves as the primary regulator for CBNA, and the SEC and FINRA serve as the primary regulators of our broker-dealer subsidiaries.

The federal banking regulators have authority to approve or disapprove mergers, acquisitions, consolidations, the establishment of branches and similar corporate actions. These banking regulators also have the power to prevent the continuance or development of unsafe or unsound banking practices or other violations of law. Federal law governs the activities in which CBNA engages, including the investments it makes and the aggregate amount of available credit that it may grant to one borrower. Various consumer and compliance laws and regulations also affect its operations. The actions the FRB takes to implement monetary policy also affect us.

In addition, CBNA is subject to regulation, supervision and examination by the CFPB with respect to consumer protection laws and regulations. The CFPB has broad authority to regulate the offering and provision of consumer financial products by depository institutions, such as CBNA, with more than $10 billion in total assets. The CFPB may promulgate rules under a variety of consumer financial protection statutes, including the Truth in Lending Act, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, the Electronic Funds Transfer Act and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act.

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Enhanced Prudential Standards and Regulatory Tailoring Rules

As a BHC with over $100 billion in total consolidated assets, we are currently subject to enhanced prudential standards and associated capital and liquidity rules (“Tailoring Rules”). The Tailoring Rules assign each BHC, including its bank subsidiaries, to one of four categories based on its size and certain risk-based indicators. CFG and CBNA are each subject to Category IV standards, the least restrictive of the requirements under the Tailoring Rules. As discussed in greater detail in “Capital and Stress Testing Requirements” and “Long-Term Debt Requirements”, the federal banking regulators proposed sweeping changes to the regulatory capital and liquidity rules that would significantly impact the application of those rules to the Company.

Bank and Financial Holding Company Regulation

As a FHC, we may engage in a broader range of activities than a BHC that is not also a FHC. These activities include securities underwriting and dealing, insurance underwriting and brokerage, merchant banking and other activities that are determined by the FRB, in coordination with the Treasury Department, to be “financial in nature or incidental thereto” or that the FRB determines unilaterally to be “complementary” to financial activities. In addition, a FHC may commence new permissible financial activities or acquire non-bank financial companies engaged in such activities, in either case, with after-the-fact notice to the FRB.

To maintain FHC status, a BHC and all of its depository institution subsidiaries must remain “well capitalized” and “well managed,” as described below under “Federal Deposit Insurance Act.” If a BHC fails to meet these regulatory standards, the FRB could place limitations on its ability to conduct the broader financial activities permissible for FHCs or impose limitations or conditions on the conduct or activities of the BHC or its affiliates. If the deficiencies persisted, the FRB could order the BHC to divest any subsidiary bank or to cease engaging in any activities permissible for FHCs that are not permissible for BHCs, or the BHC could elect to conform its non-banking activities to those permissible for a BHC that is not also a FHC. In addition, the CRA requires U.S. banks to help serve the needs of their communities. If a depository institution subsidiary of a BHC were to receive a CRA rating of less than “satisfactory”, the BHC would be prohibited from engaging in certain activities or acquisitions (see “Community Reinvestment Act” below).

Federal and state laws impose notice and approval requirements for mergers and acquisitions of other depository institutions or BHCs. As noted above, FRB approval is generally not required for BHCs to acquire a company engaged in activities that are financial in nature or incidental to activities that are financial in nature, as determined by the FRB. Prior regulatory approval is required, however, before a BHC may acquire or control more than 5% of any class of voting shares or substantially all of the assets of a BHC, including a FHC, or a bank. In considering applications for approval of acquisitions, the banking regulators may take several factors into account, including the competitive effects of the transaction in the relevant geographic markets; the financial and managerial resources and future prospects of companies involved in the transaction; the effect of the transaction on the financial stability of the U.S. banking or financial system; the companies’ compliance with anti-money laundering laws and regulations; the convenience and needs of the communities to be served; and the performance record of the IDIs involved in the transaction under the CRA.

Capital and Stress Testing Requirements

We are required to comply with the U.S. Basel III rules, which establish risk-based and leverage capital requirements. The risk-based requirements are based on a banking organization’s RWA, which is inclusive of the organization’s on- and off-balance sheet exposures. We calculate RWA using the standardized approach and have made the AOCI opt-out election, permitting us to exclude components of AOCI from regulatory capital. The leverage requirements are based on a banking organization’s average consolidated on-balance sheet assets.

Under the U.S. Basel III rules, the minimum capital ratios are:

• CET1 capital ratio of 4.5%;

• Tier 1 capital ratio of 6.0%;

• Total capital ratio of 8.0%; and

• Tier 1 leverage ratio of 4.0%.

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For BHCs with $100 billion or more in assets, such as us, the FRB’s capital rules impose an institution-specific SCB on top of each of the three minimum risk-based capital ratios listed above. Banking institutions that fail to meet the effective minimum ratios including the SCB will be subject to constraints on capital distributions, including dividends and share repurchases, and certain discretionary executive compensation. The severity of the constraints depends on the amount of the shortfall and the institution’s “eligible retained income”, defined as the greater of four quarter trailing net income net of distributions and tax effects not reflected in net income, or the average four quarter trailing net income.

On January 1, 2020, we adopted the CECL accounting standard. In reaction to the COVID disruption, on September 30, 2020, the federal banking regulators adopted a final rule relative to regulatory capital treatment of the ACL under CECL. This rule allowed electing banking organizations to delay the estimated impact of CECL on regulatory capital for a two-year period ending December 31, 2021, followed by a three-year transition period ending December 31, 2024. The three-year transition period will phase-in the reversal of the aggregate amount of the capital benefit provided during the initial two-year delay.

As a Category IV firm under the Tailoring Rules, we are subject to biennial supervisory stress testing and are exempt from company-run stress testing and related disclosure requirements. The FRB supervises Category IV firms on an ongoing basis, including evaluating the capital adequacy and capital planning processes of firms during off-cycle years. We are required to develop, maintain and submit an annual capital plan for review and approval by our Board of Directors, or one of its committees, as well as FR Y-14 reporting requirements.

On July 27, 2023, the federal banking regulators issued a proposal to implement the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision’s finalization of the post-crisis bank regulatory capital reforms. The proposal, commonly referred to as Basel III “Endgame,” would significantly revise the capital requirements applicable to large banking organizations with total assets of $100 billion or more, including the Company. Under the proposal, Category III and IV firms, including the Company as a Category IV firm, would become subject to the same capital treatment regarding the inclusion of AOCI, deductions, and rules for minority interest as Category I and II firms. The proposal would also replace the existing models-based approaches for credit and operational risk, which currently apply only to Category I and II firms, with two new approaches applicable to Category I through IV firms. The first would use the existing standardized approach and a proposed revised market risk capital rule. The second would use a new expanded risk-based approach, consisting of new non-models-based approaches for credit risk, operational risk and credit valuation adjustment risk, as well as the proposed revised market risk capital rule. The approach resulting in the lower ratio would establish the binding ratio for purposes of satisfying regulatory capital requirements and buffers, including the SCB. Category III and IV firms would also be required to calculate counterparty credit exposure relating to derivative transactions using the standardized approach for counterparty credit risk. Additionally, Category IV firms would become subject to the supplementary leverage ratio and the countercyclical capital buffer. The Company estimates a pro forma CET1 ratio, adjusted for the AOCI opt-out removal, of 9.0% as of December 31, 2023. In addition, the proposal is estimated to modestly increase our RWA on a fully phased-in basis. Under the proposal, the rule would take effect on July 1, 2025, with a three-year phase-in of the capital impact through June 30, 2028. Comments on the proposal were due by January 16, 2024. We continue to evaluate the full impact of the proposal.

For more details regarding our regulatory capital and SCB, see the “Capital and Regulatory Matters” section of Item 7. We are also subject to the FRB's risk-based capital requirements for market risk. See the “Market Risk” section of Item 7 for additional details.

Liquidity Requirements

The liquidity coverage ratio (“LCR”) is designed to ensure that a covered bank or BHC maintains an adequate level of unencumbered high-quality liquid assets to cover expected net cash outflows over a 30-day time horizon under an acute liquidity stress scenario. The NSFR is designed to promote more medium- and long-term funding of the assets and activities of banking organizations over a one-year time horizon. Under the Tailoring Rules, Category IV firms with less than $50 billion in weighted short-term wholesale funding, such as us, are not subject to any LCR or NSFR requirement.

We are subject to certain liquidity requirements under the Tailoring Rules including liquidity buffer, stress testing, risk management and reporting requirements. In addition, as a Category IV firm, we are required to calculate collateral positions monthly, establish a set of liquidity risk limits, and monitor certain elements of intraday liquidity risk exposures.

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Resolution Planning

Category IV firms such as CFG are no longer required to submit resolution plans under section 165(d) of the Dodd-Frank Act. However, CBNA is required to periodically file an IDI resolution plan with the FDIC. This plan enables the FDIC, as receiver, to resolve the institution under applicable receivership provisions of the FDIA in a manner that ensures that depositors receive access to their insured deposits within one business day of the institution’s failure, maximizes the net present value return from the sale or disposition of the institution’s assets and minimizes the amount of any loss to the institution’s creditors. In 2021, the FDIC issued a Statement on Resolution Plans for IDIs that, among other things, established a three-year filing cycle for banks with $100 billion or more in total assets, such as CBNA, and provided details regarding the content of the resolution plans that filers are required to prepare. CBNA submitted its most recent resolution plan to the FDIC on December 1, 2022.

On August 29, 2023, the FDIC issued a proposal that would require IDIs with total assets of $100 billion or more, including CBNA, to submit a more robust resolution plan biennially that includes a comprehensive strategy from the point of failure to liquidation or return of the institution to the private sector. The identified strategy must ensure timely access to insured deposits, maximize value from the sale or disposition of assets, minimize losses realized by creditors, and address potential risks of adverse effects on U.S. economic conditions or financial stability. In addition, the strategy generally expects, but does not require, a default scenario whereby the FDIC, as receiver of the failed institution, operates the institution under a bridge bank. The proposal also enhances how the credibility of resolution plans will be assessed, expands expectations regarding engagement and capabilities testing, and requires IDIs to demonstrate the capability to promptly establish a virtual data room in the run-up to or upon failure. The proposal provides that IDIs submit their initial resolution plan no earlier than 270 days from the effective date of the amended rule. Comments on the proposal were due by November 30, 2023. We are in the process of evaluating the impact of the proposal on our business.

Long-Term Debt Requirements

On August 29, 2023, the federal banking regulators issued a proposal that would require large bank holding companies and IDIs with total assets of $100 billion or more, such as CFG and CBNA, to maintain a minimum amount of long-term debt. The joint agency proposal aims to increase the resolvability and resiliency of large banking organizations by mandating a long-term debt requirement to provide the regulatory agencies additional resources to resolve failed banking organizations, foster depositor confidence, and decrease costs to the DIF in the event of a large banking organization failure. Under the proposal, large bank holding companies and IDIs would each be required to maintain a minimum amount of eligible long-term debt equal to the greater of 6 percent of RWA, 3.5 percent of average total consolidated assets, and 2.5 percent of total leverage exposure for those banks subject to the supplementary leverage ratio. The proposal also prohibits large banking organizations from engaging in certain activities that could complicate their resolution and discourages them from holding long-term debt issued by other banks to reduce interconnectedness. The proposal provides for a three-year transition period, with 25 percent of the long-term debt requirement to be met one year after the rule is finalized, 50 percent after two years, and 100 percent after three years. Comments on the proposal were due by January 16, 2024. We continue to evaluate the full impact of the proposal.

Standards for Safety and Soundness

The FDIA requires the federal banking regulators to prescribe operational and managerial standards for all IDIs, including CBNA. Regulations and interagency guidelines adopted by these agencies set forth the safety and soundness standards used to identify and address problems at IDIs before capital becomes impaired. If an agency determines that a bank fails to satisfy any standard, it may require the bank to submit an acceptable plan to achieve compliance, consistent with deadlines for the submission and review of such safety and soundness compliance plans. If, after being notified to submit a compliance plan, an institution fails to submit an acceptable compliance plan or fails in any material respect to implement an acceptable compliance plan, the agency must issue an order directing action to correct the deficiency and may issue an order directing other types of actions that an undercapitalized institution is subject to under the FDIA as discussed in “Federal Deposit Insurance Act” below. If an institution fails to comply with such an order, the agency may seek to enforce such order in judicial proceedings and to impose civil money penalties.

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Federal Deposit Insurance Act

The FDIA requires, among other things, that federal banking regulators take “prompt corrective action” with respect to IDIs that do not meet minimum capital requirements, as described above in “Capital and Stress Testing Requirements.” The FDIA sets forth the following five capital categories: “well-capitalized,” “adequately capitalized,” “undercapitalized,” “significantly undercapitalized” and “critically undercapitalized.” An IDI’s capital category is determined based on how its capital levels compare with various relevant capital measures and certain other factors that are established by regulation. The federal banking regulators must take certain mandatory supervisory actions, and are authorized to take other discretionary actions, with respect to institutions that are undercapitalized, significantly undercapitalized or critically undercapitalized, with the actions becoming more restrictive and punitive the lower the institution’s capital category. Under existing rules, an IDI that is not an advanced approaches institution, such as CBNA, is deemed to be “well capitalized” if it has a CET1 ratio of at least 6.5%, a tier 1 capital ratio of at least 8%, a total capital ratio of at least 10%, and a tier 1 leverage ratio of at least 5%.

The FRB’s regulations which are applicable to BHCs, such as the Parent Company, separately define “well capitalized”as having a tier 1 capital ratio of at least 6% and a total capital ratio of at least 10%. As described above under “Bank and Financial Holding Company Regulation”, a FHC that is not well capitalized and well managed (or whose bank subsidiaries are not well capitalized and well managed) under applicable prompt corrective action standards may be restricted in certain of its activities and ultimately may lose FHC status. As of December 31, 2023, both the Parent Company and CBNA were well-capitalized.

The FDIA prohibits insured banks from accepting brokered deposits or offering interest rates on any deposits significantly higher than the prevailing rate in the bank’s normal market area or nationally, depending upon where the deposits are solicited, unless it is “well-capitalized,” or it is “adequately capitalized” and receives a waiver from the FDIC. A bank that is “adequately capitalized” and accepts brokered deposits under a waiver from the FDIC may not pay an interest rate on any deposit in excess of 75 basis points over certain prevailing market rates. The FDIA imposes no such restrictions on a bank that is “well-capitalized.”

Deposit Insurance

The DIF provides insurance coverage for certain deposits, up to a standard maximum deposit insurance amount of $250,000 per depositor based on ownership right and capacity category codes and is funded through assessments on IDIs based on the risk each institution poses to the DIF. CBNA accepts customer deposits insured by the DIF and, therefore, must pay insurance premiums. The FDIC may increase CBNA’s insurance premiums based on various factors, including the FDIC’s assessment of its risk profile. The FDIC also requires large depository institutions, including CBNA, to maintain enhanced deposit account recordkeeping and related information technology system capabilities to facilitate prompt calculation of insured deposits if such an institution was taken into FDIC receivership.

The FDIC, as required under the FDIA, established a plan in September 2020 to restore the DIF reserve ratio, 1.13% as of September 30, 2023, to meet or exceed the statutory minimum of 1.35% within eight years. This plan did not include an increase in the deposit insurance assessment rate. During 2022, the FDIC determined that the DIF reserve ratio was at risk of not reaching the statutory minimum by the statutory deadline of September 30, 2028, absent an increase in assessment rates. In October 2022, the FDIC adopted a final rule to increase initial base deposit insurance assessment rates by 2 basis points, beginning with the first quarterly assessment period of 2023. This increase in assessment rates was intended to improve the likelihood that the DIF reserve ratio will reach the required minimum by the statutory deadline of September 30, 2028.

In November 2023, the FDIC approved a final rule to impose special assessments to recover the loss to the DIF arising from the protection of uninsured depositors in connection with the systemic risk determination announced on March 12, 2023, following the closures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, as required by the FDIA. Under the final rule, the special assessment is levied on an IDI’s assessment base, which is equal to estimated uninsured deposits as reported on the institution’s December 31, 2022 Call Report, excluding the first $5 billion in estimated uninsured deposits. The special assessment is imposed at an annual rate of approximately 13.4 basis points and will be collected over eight quarterly assessment periods beginning with the first quarter of 2024.

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The FDIC’s current estimate of the loss attributable to this systemic risk determination is $16.3 billion. This estimate will be periodically adjusted as assets are sold, liabilities are satisfied, and receivership expenses are incurred. The FDIC would cease collection of special assessments before the end of the initial eight-quarter collection period if they expect the loss to be less than expected assessment collections. The FDIC also reserves the right to impose an extended special assessment collection period after the initial eight-quarter period to collect the difference between losses and amounts collected, and impose a one-time final shortfall special assessment after both receiverships terminate.

Based on the final rule and related accounting guidance, CBNA’s special assessment is approximately $225 million and was recognized in other operating expense in the Company’s Consolidated Statement of Operations for the year ended December 31, 2023. CBNA’s special assessment is subject to change if the eventual loss to the DIF differs from the FDIC’s current estimate.

Dividends

Various federal statutory provisions and regulations, as well as regulatory expectations, limit the amount of dividends that we and our subsidiaries may pay.

Our payment of dividends to our stockholders is subject to oversight by the FRB. In particular, the FRB reviews the dividend policies and share repurchases of a large BHC based on capital plans submitted as part of the CCAR process and the results of stress tests, as discussed above. In addition to other limitations, our ability to make any capital distributions, including dividends and share repurchases, is subject to the prior approval of the FRB if we are required to resubmit our capital plan. See “Capital and Stress Testing Requirements” above.

Dividends payable by CBNA, as a national bank subsidiary, are limited to the lesser of the amount calculated under a “recent earnings” test and an “undivided profits” test. Under the recent earnings test, a dividend may not be paid if the total of all dividends declared during any calendar year exceeds the sum of current year net income and retained net income of the two preceding years, less any required transfers to surplus, unless the national bank obtains the approval of the OCC. Under the undivided profits test, a dividend may not be paid in excess of the entity’s “undivided profits” (generally accumulated net profits that have not been paid out as dividends or transferred to surplus). Federal banking regulatory agencies have issued policy statements that provide that FDIC-insured depository institutions and their holding companies should generally pay dividends only out of current operating earnings.

Support of Subsidiary Bank

The Parent Company is required to serve as a source of financial and managerial strength to CBNA and, under appropriate conditions, to commit resources to support CBNA. This support may be required by the FRB at times when the Parent Company may not have the financial resources to do so, or when doing so may not serve our interests or those of our shareholders or creditors. In addition, any capital loans by a BHC to a subsidiary bank are subordinate in right of payment to deposits and certain other indebtedness of such subsidiary bank. In the event of a BHC’s bankruptcy, any commitment by the BHC to a federal bank regulatory agency to maintain the capital of a subsidiary bank will be assumed by the bankruptcy trustee and entitled to a priority of payment.

Transactions with Affiliates and Insiders

Sections 23A and 23B of the Federal Reserve Act establish certain quantitative limits and other prudential requirements for loans, purchases of assets, and certain other transactions between a member bank or its subsidiaries and its affiliates. The term “member bank” includes national banks such as CBNA.

Section 23A prohibits a bank from entering a “covered transaction” with an affiliate if, after the transaction, the aggregate amount of the bank’s covered transactions with that affiliate would exceed 10% of the bank’s capital stock and surplus, or the aggregate amount of the bank’s covered transactions with all of its affiliates would exceed 20% of the bank’s capital stock and surplus. Covered transactions include loans and other extensions of credit to an affiliate, investments in the securities of an affiliate, purchases of assets from an affiliate, and certain other transactions that expose the bank to the credit risks of its affiliates.

Section 23B of the Federal Reserve Act requires that transactions, including all covered transactions, be on terms substantially the same, or at least as favorable to the bank, as those prevailing at the time for comparable transactions with non-affiliates (the “Market Terms Requirement”). In addition to covered transactions, the Market Terms Requirement applies to certain other transactions between CBNA and its affiliates, including services between CBNA and the Parent Company and loans to CBNA from the Parent Company.

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Under sections 22(g) and (h) of the Federal Reserve Act and the FRB’s Regulation O, we are also subject to quantitative restrictions on extensions of credit to executive officers, directors, principal stockholders and their related interests. These extensions of credit may not exceed certain quantitative limits, must be made on substantially the same terms as those currently prevailing in the market for comparable transactions with third parties, and must not involve more than the normal risk of repayment or present other unfavorable features. Certain extensions of credit also require the approval of our Board.

Volcker Rule

The Dodd-Frank Act prohibits banks and their affiliates from engaging in proprietary trading and investing in, sponsoring and having certain relationships with private funds such as certain hedge funds or private equity funds. This statutory provision is commonly called the “Volcker Rule.” Under this rule, we are viewed as having “moderate” trading assets and liabilities, which subjects us to a simplified compliance program requirement that is appropriate for our activities, size, scope, and complexity. This Volcker Rule does not have a material impact on Citizens.

Consumer Financial Protection Regulations

The retail activities of banks are subject to a variety of statutes and regulations designed to protect consumers and promote lending to various sectors of the economy and population. These laws include, but are not limited to, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the Truth in Lending Act, the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act, the Service Members Civil Relief Act, the Expedited Funds Availability Act, the Right to Financial Privacy Act, the Truth in Savings Act, the Electronic Funds Transfer Act, and their respective federal regulations and state law counterparts.

In addition to these federal laws and regulations, the guidance and interpretations of the various federal agencies charged with the responsibility of implementing such regulations also influence loan and deposit operations.

The CFPB has broad rulemaking, supervisory, examination and enforcement authority over various consumer financial protection laws, including those referenced above, fair lending laws and certain other statutes. The CFPB also has examination and primary enforcement authority with respect to depository institutions with $10 billion or more in assets, including the authority to prevent unfair, deceptive or abusive acts or practices in connection with the offering of consumer financial products. The OCC also examines our retail activities.

The Dodd-Frank Act permits states to adopt stricter consumer protection laws and standards than those adopted at the federal level, and in certain circumstances allows state attorneys general to enforce compliance with both the state and federal laws and regulations on banks like us.

Protection of Customer Personal Information and Cybersecurity

The privacy provisions of GLBA generally prohibit financial institutions, including us, from disclosing nonpublic personal financial information of consumer customers to third parties for certain purposes unless customers have the opportunity to opt out of the disclosure. The Fair Credit Reporting Act restricts information sharing among affiliates for marketing purposes. Both the Fair Credit Reporting Act and Regulation V, which are issued by the FRB, govern the use and provision of information to consumer reporting agencies.

The federal banking regulators regularly issue guidance regarding cybersecurity intended to enhance cyber risk management standards among financial institutions. Financial institutions are expected to design multiple layers of security controls to establish lines of defense and to ensure that their risk management processes also address the risk posed by compromised customer credentials, including security measures to reliably authenticate customers when accessing internet-based services of the financial institution. Further, a financial institution’s management is expected to maintain sufficient business continuity planning processes to ensure the rapid recovery, resumption and maintenance of the institution’s operations after a cyber-attack involving destructive malware or other compromise of customer data and/or systems. A financial institution is also expected to develop appropriate processes to enable recovery of data and business operations and address rebuilding network capabilities and restoring data if the institution or its critical service providers fall victim to this type of cyber-attack or compromise. If we fail to observe the regulatory guidance, we could be subject to various regulatory sanctions, including financial penalties. For a further discussion of risks related to cybersecurity, see Item 1A “Risk Factors.”

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A financial institution is also required to notify its primary banking regulator within 36 hours of computer-security incidents that have materially disrupted or degraded, or is reasonably likely to materially disrupt or degrade its:

• ability to carry out banking operations, activities, or processes, or deliver banking products and services to a material portion of its customer base;

• business lines, including associated operations, services, functions, and support, that upon failure would result in a material loss of revenue, profit, or franchise value; or

• operations, including associated services, functions, and support, the failure or discontinuance of which would pose a threat to the financial stability of the United States.

In addition, in August 2023, the SEC adopted a final rule that requires the disclosure of material cybersecurity incidents on Form 8-K. Registrants must describe the material aspects of the nature, scope and timing of the incident, as well as the impact of the incident on the registrant. The final rule also requires registrants to describe, on Form 10-K, their processes for assessing, identifying and managing material risks from cybersecurity threats and whether such risks have materially affected the registrant. Registrants must also describe Board oversight of risks from cybersecurity threats and management’s role and expertise in assessing and managing material risks from such threats. See Item 1C “Cybersecurity” for more information.

State regulators have also been active in implementing privacy and cybersecurity standards and regulations. Recently, several states have adopted laws and regulations requiring certain financial institutions to implement cybersecurity programs and provide details with respect to these programs. In addition, many states have recently implemented or modified their data breach notification and data privacy requirements. We expect this trend of state-level activity to continue and are continually monitoring developments in the states in which we operate.

Community Reinvestment Act

The CRA requires CBNA’s primary federal bank regulatory agency, the OCC, to evaluate the bank’s record in meeting the credit needs of the communities it serves, including low- and moderate-income neighborhoods and individuals. Institutions are assigned one of four ratings: “Outstanding,” “Satisfactory,” “Needs to Improve,” or “Substantial Noncompliance.” A bank’s CRA record is considered by regulatory agencies in evaluating mergers, acquisitions and applications to open a branch or facility. In addition, the CRA record of a subsidiary bank of a FHC is considered if a FHC wishes to commence certain new financial activities or to acquire a company engaged in such activities, which requires a rating of at least “satisfactory.” CBNA received an “Outstanding” rating on its most recent CRA evaluation.

On October 24, 2023, the federal banking regulators issued a joint final rule that revises the agencies’ CRA regulations. The primary provisions of the final rule, along with the most significant changes from the existing CRA regulatory framework, are outlined below:

• a tiered evaluation framework is established based on a bank’s asset size, similar to the existing CRA regulatory framework;

• the geographic area in which banks may be evaluated for performance is expanded to include areas outside of where they have physical locations in order to capture the varied activities a bank conducts, such as online and mobile banking, and the communities in which it operates;

• bank retail lending and community development financing will be evaluated using a new metrics-based approach; and

• clarifies eligible CRA activities, such as affordable housing.

The final rule takes effect on April 1, 2024, with staggered compliance dates of January 1, 2026, and January 1, 2027 for certain reporting requirements. We are in the process of evaluating the impact of the final rule on our business.

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Compensation

Our compensation practices are subject to oversight by the federal banking regulators. Guidance issued by the federal banking regulators is designed to ensure that incentive compensation arrangements take into account risk and are consistent with safe and sound practices. The guidance sets forth the following three key principles with respect to incentive compensation arrangements:

• the arrangements should provide employees with incentives that appropriately balance risk and financial results in a manner that does not encourage employees to expose their organizations to imprudent risk;

• the arrangements should be compatible with effective controls and risk management; and

• the arrangements should be supported by strong corporate governance.

The U.S. financial regulators, including the FRB, the OCC and the SEC, jointly proposed regulations in 2011 and again in 2016 to implement the incentive compensation requirements of Section 956 of the Dodd-Frank Act. These regulations have not been finalized.

Anti-Money Laundering

The Bank Secrecy Act (“BSA”) and the Patriot Act contain anti-money laundering (“AML”) and financial transparency provisions intended to detect and prevent the use of the U.S. financial system for money laundering and terrorist financing activities. The BSA, as amended by the Patriot Act, requires depository institutions and their holding companies to maintain an AML program, verify the identity of customers and certain beneficial owners for legal entity customers, monitor for and report suspicious transactions, report on cash transactions exceeding specified thresholds, and respond to requests for information by regulatory authorities and law enforcement agencies. We are also required to provide our employees with AML training, designate an AML compliance officer, and undergo an annual, independent audit to assess the effectiveness of our AML program. We have implemented policies, procedures, and internal controls that are designed to comply with these AML requirements. Financial services regulators are focusing their examinations on AML compliance, and we continue to monitor and augment, where necessary, our AML compliance programs. The federal banking agencies are required, when reviewing bank and bank holding company acquisition or merger applications, to take into account the effectiveness of the AML activities of the applicants.

The Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020 (“AMLA”), enacted in January 2021 as part of the National Defense Authorization Act, requires the U.S. Treasury Department to issue National Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Priorities and conduct studies and issue regulations that may, over the next few years, significantly alter some of the due diligence, recordkeeping and reporting requirements that the BSA and the Patriot Act impose on financial institutions. The AMLA also increases penalties for violations of the BSA and significantly expands a whistleblower award program both of which could increase the prospect of regulatory enforcement. In 2021, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), a bureau of the U.S. Treasury Department, issued the priorities for AML and countering the financing of terrorism policy, as required under the AMLA. These priorities include corruption, cybercrime, terrorist financing, fraud, transnational crime, drug trafficking, human trafficking and proliferation financing.

Office of Foreign Assets Control Regulation

The U.S. has imposed economic sanctions that affect transactions with designated foreign countries, nationals and others, that are administered by OFAC. OFAC-administered sanctions targeting countries take many different forms and generally contain one or more of the following elements:

• restrictions on trade with or investment in a sanctioned country, including prohibitions against direct or indirect imports from and exports to a sanctioned country and prohibitions on U.S. persons engaging in financial transactions relating to, making investments in, or providing investment-related advice or assistance to, a sanctioned country; and

• a blocking of assets in which the government or specially designated nationals of the sanctioned country have an interest, by prohibiting transfers of property subject to U.S. jurisdiction, including property in the possession or control of U.S. persons. Blocked assets (e.g., property and bank deposits) cannot be paid out, withdrawn, set off or transferred in any manner without a license from OFAC.

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Lists including the names of individuals and organizations suspected of aiding, harboring or engaging in terrorist acts, including the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons, is published and routinely updated by OFAC. We are responsible for, among other things, blocking accounts of, and transactions with, such targets and countries, prohibiting unlicensed trade and financial transactions with them and reporting blocked transactions after they occur. If we identify a name on any transaction, account or wire transfer that is on an OFAC list we must freeze the associated account, file a suspicious activity report and notify the appropriate authorities. Failure to comply with these sanctions could have serious legal and reputational consequences.

Regulation of Broker-Dealers

Our subsidiaries, Citizens Securities, Inc., and Citizens JMP Securities, LLC are registered broker-dealers with the SEC and subject to regulation and examination by the SEC as well as FINRA and other self-regulatory organizations. These regulations cover a broad range of matters, including capital requirements; sales and trading practices; use of client funds and securities; the conduct of directors, officers and employees; record-keeping and recording; supervisory procedures to prevent improper trading on material nonpublic information; qualification and licensing of sales personnel; and limitations on the extension of credit in securities transactions. In addition to federal registration, state securities commissions require the registration of certain broker-dealers.

Heightened Risk Governance Standards

CBNA is subject to OCC guidelines that impose heightened risk governance standards on large national banks with average total consolidated assets of $50 billion or more. The guidelines set forth minimum standards for the design and implementation of a bank’s risk governance framework and its associated oversight by a bank’s board of directors. The guidelines are intended to protect the safety and soundness of covered banks and improve the ability of bank examiners to assess compliance with the OCC’s expectations. Under the guidelines, a bank may use the risk governance framework of its parent company if it meets the minimum standards and the risk profiles of the parent company and the covered bank are substantially the same, along with certain other conditions. CBNA has elected to use the Parent Company’s risk governance framework. A bank’s board of directors is required to have two members who are independent of bank and parent company management, ensure that the risk governance framework meets the appropriate standards, provide active oversight and a credible challenge to management’s recommendations and decisions, and ensure that decisions made by the parent company do not jeopardize the safety and soundness of the bank.

Intellectual Property

In the highly competitive banking industry in which we operate, trademarks, service marks and logos are important to the success of our business. We own and license a variety of trademarks, service marks, logos and pending registrations and are spending significant resources to develop our stand-alone brands.

Website Access to Citizens’ Filings with the SEC and Corporate Governance Information

We maintain a website at investor.citizensbank.com. We make available on our website, free of charge, our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K, including exhibits, and amendments to those reports that are filed or furnished to the SEC pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. These documents are made available on our website as soon as reasonably practicable after they are electronically filed with or furnished to the SEC. The SEC also maintains an internet site (www.sec.gov) that contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC. Information about our Board and its committees and corporate governance, including our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, is available on our website at investor.citizensbank.com/about-us/investor-relations/corporate-governance.