CIT Group

CIT Group Inc.
Public
Traded as NYSE: CIT
Russell 1000 Component
Industry Financial services
Founded 1908 (1908)
Founder Henry Ittleson
Headquarters Pasadena, California, USA
Key people
 Ellen Alemany, Chairwoman & CEO
John Fawcett, CFO
Products Factoring
Mortgages
Increase $0.303 billion (2017)
Total assets Decrease $49.278 billion (2017)
Total equity Decrease $7.320 billion (2017)
Number of employees
 4,167 (2017)
Capital ratio 14.4% Common Equity Tier 1 capital (2017)
Website www.cit.com
Footnotes / references
[1]

CIT Group Inc. is a financial holding company incorporated in Delaware and headquartered in Pasadena, California, in the United States. The company's name is an abbreviation of an early corporate name, Commercial Investment Trust. It provides financing and leasing capital to customers in over 30 industries. CIT also operates CIT Bank.

The company is ranked 550th on the Fortune 1000 list of the largest American companies[2] and is on the list of largest banks in the United States.

CIT filed for bankruptcy protection on November 1, 2009, and with the consent of its bondholders, emerged from bankruptcy 38 days later, on December 10, 2009.[3][4]

Current operations

CIT operates two business segments:[1]

Commercial banking

  • Provides lending, leasing, and other financial services primarily to small and middle-market companies in certain industries.
  • Provides senior secured commercial real estate loans, including construction loans to experienced and well-capitalized real estate developers.
  • Provides factoring, secured finance, and receivables management products to companies across the retail supply chain.
  • Provides equipment leasing and secured financing to companies in the rail industry.

Consumer banking

History

On February 11, 1908, Henry Ittleson founded the Commercial Credit and Investment Company in St. Louis, Missouri.[5]

In 1915, the company moved its headquarters to New York City and renamed itself Commercial Investment Trust and went by the initials of C.I.T. By that time, the company provided financing for wholesale suppliers and producers of consumer goods. The company added automobile financing to its product line in 1916, through an agreement with Studebaker, the first of its kind in the auto industry. During World War I, CIT financed the manufacture of 150 submarine chasers. It also added consumer financing of radios through an agreement with Thomas Edison, Inc. During the Roaring 20s following the war, consumer spending rose dramatically and CIT prospered in its consumer appliance, furniture, and automobile financing groups. In 1924, CIT incorporated in Delaware and listed its stock on the New York Stock Exchange. CIT entered the field of factoring in 1928 and expanded operations into Europe in 1929.[6]

With international tensions rising prior to World War II, CIT closed its German operations in 1934. Arthur O. Dietz succeeded Ittleson as president of the company in 1939. During the war, CIT offered its 2000 employees a month's bonus, life insurance, and a guaranteed job on return if they served in the United States Armed Forces. Between 1947 and 1950, the company's net income rose from $7.3 million to $30.8 million. Ittleson died at age 77 on October 27, 1948.[6]

The company moved into a new building at 650 Madison Avenue in Manhattan in 1957. In 1960, Walter Lundell succeeded Dietz as president of the company. Five years later, in 1959, the company passed $100 billion ($839 billion in recent terms) in financing volume since its founding. The Vietnam War racial turmoil of the 1960s resulted in CIT making changes to its business. In 1969, CIT entered the personal and home equity loan and leasing business and left auto financing. In 1979, restrictive banking rules forced CIT to sell its bank, National Bank of North America. CIT was acquired by RCA Corporation in 1980. RCA promptly sold CIT's four manufacturing businesses: Picker X-Ray, Inc., Gibson Greeting Cards, Inc., All-Steel, Inc. (office furniture), and Raco, Inc. (wall boxes for electric switches and outlets.) The Madison Avenue building was sold in 1982 as the company moved to a newly constructed headquarters facility in Livingston, New Jersey in 1983.[6]

In 1984, CIT was sold to Manufacturers Hanover Trust.[6] In 1989, Manufacturers Hanover Trust sold 60% of CIT to Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank of Japan.[6]

In 1991, the company acquired Fidelcor Business Credit Corporation, which increased its services to small businesses. In 1992, CIT opened 15 new offices in 7 states.[6]

In 1997, the company became a public company via an initial public offering that raised $850 million.[6][7]

On November 15, 1999, CIT acquired Toronto-based Newcourt Credit Group in a $4.2 billion transaction, which created one of the largest publicly owned leasing companies.[8][9] In 2000, CIT announced record earnings of $611.6 million, an increase of 57.1% from the prior year, which was largely attributed to the acquisition of Newcourt the year before.[10]

In 2001, Tyco acquired CIT for $9.2 billion in stock.[11][12][13] CIT was renamed as Tyco Capital.[14]

Tyco ran into operating troubles and sold or spun off non-core operations, including CIT. On July 8, 2002, Tyco completed its divestment of its Tyco Capital business through an initial public offering, via the sale of 100% of the common shares in CIT Group Inc.[15][16]

In 2006, CIT moved its global headquarters back to New York City, opening a new headquarters across from the New York Public Library.[17][18] CIT retained its Livingston campus as its corporate headquarters.

Under the leadership of CEO Jeff Peek, assets at CIT jumped 77% from 2004 to the end of 2007 as it acquired companies in education lending and subprime mortgages. Those acquisitions turned out to be disastrous for the company and in the following eight quarters, CIT reported more than $3 billion in losses.[19]

On July 1, 2008, CIT Group announced that it would sell its home lending division to Lone Star Funds for $1.5 billion in cash and the assumption of $4.4 billion in debt and announced that it would sell its manufactured housing loan portfolio, with a face value of $470 million in loans, to Vanderbilt Mortgage and Finance for approximately $300 million.[20][21][22]

In 2008, CIT became a bank holding company in order to receive $2.3 billion in Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) funds.

On July 15, 2009, CIT's request for Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation loan guarantees was rejected.[23] At 6:03 PM, the company issued a press release stating that talks of a government bailout were unlikely and that the company had been advised that there was "no appreciable likelihood of additional government support being provided over the near term"[24] and that it was very close to declaring bankruptcy.[25][26][27]

On July 19, 2009, the company received a bailout via a $3 billion deal via an agreement with the bondholders group, which included Pacific Investment Management Company (PIMCO) and other large bond holders.[28] CIT said it planned a comprehensive restructuring of its liabilities.[29]

Effective July 24, 2009, CIT was removed from the S&P 500 Index.[30]

On Sunday, November 1, 2009, CIT Group filed for bankruptcy protection under Chapter 11, Title 11, United States Code.[31][32][33]

On December 10, 2009, CIT satisfied all of the conditions required to consummate the prepackaged Plan of Reorganization, which included the cancellation of existing debt and shares and the issuance of new debt and publicly traded shares.[34]

As part of the reorganization plan, CIT named seven new independent directors. On January 19, 2010, Peter J. Tobin, a member of the board of directors, was named interim Chief Executive Officer, replacing Jeff Peek, who resigned effective January 15, 2010.[35] On February 8, 2010, former Merrill Lynch CEO John Thain was hired as chairman and Chief Executive Officer.[36]

On July 22, 2014, CIT Group announced an agreement to acquire OneWest Bank for $3.4 billion in cash and stock.[37] The California Reinvestment Coalition was concerned about the possibility of the FDIC's loss-sharing agreement with OneWest being transferred to CIT Group and the growth of a bank that is considered too big to fail and so it filed a Freedom of Information Act request in October 2014 seeking information about the amount of money paid out to OneWest's investors under the loss-share agreement and what conversations FDIC staff have had with the leadership of OneWest Bank and CIT Group.[38] On July 21, 2015, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Reserve approved CIT Group's acquisition of OneWest Bank.[39] The acquisition closed on August 3, 2015.[40]

Effective November 1, 2015, CEO John Thain resigned and was replaced by Ellen Alemany, a member of the board of directors.[41][42][43]

On February 19, 2016, Thain resigned as chairman and Ellen Alemany became chairwoman in addition to CEO.[44][45]

In April 2017, the company sold its aircraft lease business to Avolon for $10.38 billion.[46]

In October 2017, the company sold Financial Freedom, acquired as part of the acquisition of OneWest Bank, and its reverse mortgage portfolio.[47]

References

  1. 1 2 "CIT Group Inc. 2017 Form 10-K Annual Report". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
  2. ↑ "Fortune 500: CIT Group". Fortune.
  3. ↑ "CIT Group Chapter 11 Petition" (PDF). PacerMonitor. November 1, 2009.
  4. ↑ "CIT Leaves Bankruptcy, With Questions". The New York Times. December 10, 2009.
  5. ↑ ARENSON, KAREN W. (July 27, 1979). "C.I.T. Likes to Take Its Time". The New York Times.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "CHRONOLOGY: A century of CIT, from St Louis to New York". Reuters. November 1, 2009.
  7. ↑ REEVES, SCOTT (December 15, 1997). "Best and Worst". Barron's.
  8. ↑ Greenberg, Larry M.; Zuckerman, Gregory (March 9, 1999). "CIT to Acquire Newcourt Credit In Stock Deal for $4.12 Billion". The Wall Street Journal. (subscription required)
  9. ↑ "Credit gambit: CIT Group Inc. agreed to acquire Newcourt". Chicago Tribune. March 8, 1999.
  10. ↑ CIT Group Inc. 2000 Annual Report
  11. ↑ "Tyco buying CIT for $9.2B". CNNMoney. March 13, 2001.
  12. ↑ Deogun, Nikhil; Lipin, Steven; Maremont, Mark (March 13, 2001). "Tyco International to Acquire CIT Group for $9.2 Billion". The Wall Street Journal. (subscription required)
  13. ↑ "Tyco Purchases The CIT Group, Inc" (Press release). PR Newswire. June 1, 2001.
  14. ↑ "Tyco International Ltd. Renames CIT Tyco Capital" (Press release). PR Newswire. October 1, 2001.
  15. ↑ "Tyco raises $4.6-billion in CIT spinoff". The Globe and Mail. Bloomberg News. July 2, 2002.
  16. ↑ Maremont, Mark (July 24, 2002). "Tyco Posts $2.32 Billion Loss, Cites Downturn, CIT Spinoff". The Wall Street Journal. (subscription required)
  17. ↑ "CIT Establishes New York City As Its Global Headquarters" (Press release). PR Newswire. June 8, 2005.
  18. ↑ "CIT Opens New Global Headquarters in New York City" (Press release). PR Newswire. April 27, 2006.
  19. ↑ Creswell, Julie (May 4, 2008). "A Lender Gets Caught in the Currents". The New York Times. (subscription required)
  20. ↑ "CIT Sells Home Loan Business to Lone Star". The New York Times. July 1, 2008.
  21. ↑ Comlay, Elinor (July 1, 2008). "CIT to shed $10 billion mortgage assets". Reuters.
  22. ↑ "CIT Agrees to Sell Home Lending Business" (Press release). Business Wire. July 1, 2008.
  23. ↑ de la Merced, Michael J. (July 15, 2009). "CIT Says It Won't Get More US Aid". The New York Times. (subscription required)
  24. ↑ "CIT Announces That Discussions with Government Agencies Have Ceased" (Press release). Business Wire. July 15, 2009.
  25. ↑ Barr, Colin (July 15, 2009). "CIT: No bailout for us". Fortune.
  26. ↑ Appelbaum, Binyamin (July 16, 2009). "CIT Group Closer to Bankruptcy as U.S. Denies Aid". The Washington Post.
  27. ↑ Jones, Sandra M. (July 15, 2009). "CIT Group's troubles could weigh heavily on retailers this holiday season". Los Angeles Times.
  28. ↑ Bansal, Paritosh (July 19, 2009). "CIT clinches deal to stave off bankruptcy". Reuters.
  29. ↑ "CIT gets $3 bln lifeline from bondholders". Reuters. July 20, 2009.
  30. ↑ Stempel, Jonathan (July 20, 2009). "S&P 500 to drop CIT Group, add Red Hat". Reuters.
  31. ↑ "CIT files for 5th largest U.S. bankruptcy". CNNMoney. November 1, 2009.
  32. ↑ de la Merced, Michael J. (November 1, 2009). "CIT to Test Speed of Bankruptcy Court". The New York Times. (subscription required)
  33. ↑ "Commercial lending giant CIT files bankruptcy". NBC News. Associated Press. November 1, 2009.
  34. ↑ "CIT Shares Commence Trading on New York Stock Exchange" (Press release). Business Wire. December 10, 2009.
  35. ↑ "CIT Names Director Peter J. Tobin Interim Chief Executive Officer" (Press release). Business Wire. January 19, 2010.
  36. ↑ "Former Merrill chief tapped to head CIT". CNNMoney. February 8, 2010.
  37. ↑ "CCIT to Acquire OneWest Bank for $3.4 Billion in Cash and Stock" (Press release). Business Wire. July 22, 2014.
  38. ↑ "California Reinvestment Coalition Urges Greater Transparency by Regulators in Merger Creating Too Big to Fail Bank" (Press release). Vocus. October 3, 2014.
  39. ↑ Ensign, Rachel Louise (July 21, 2015). "CIT Group Wins Key Federal Approval for Acquisition of OneWest Bank's Parent". The Wall Street Journal. (subscription required)
  40. ↑ "CIT Completes Acquisition of OneWest Bank" (Press release). Business Wire. August 3, 2015.
  41. ↑ "CIT Announces Senior Management Succession Plan" (Press release). Business Wire. October 21, 2015.
  42. ↑ Buhayar, Noah; Boston, Claire (October 21, 2015). "CIT's Thain to Step Down as CEO as Lender Seeks Asset Sales". Bloomberg L.P.
  43. ↑ Ensign, Rachel Louise; Rudegeair, Peter (October 21, 2015). "John Thain to Retire as CIT CEO". The Wall Street Journal. (subscription required)
  44. ↑ "CIT Announces Changes to Board of Directors" (Press release). Business Wire. February 19, 2016.
  45. ↑ Ensign, Rachel Louise (February 19, 2016). "Thain to Step Down as CIT Chairman". The Wall Street Journal. (subscription required)
  46. ↑ "Avolon Completes US$10.38 Billion Acquisition of CIT Group Aircraft Leasing Business" (Press release). Business Wire. April 4, 2017.
  47. ↑ "CIT Reaches Agreement to Sell Financial Freedom and Reverse Mortgage Portfolio" (Press release). PR Newswire. October 6, 2017.
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