Citibank's reviewer clicked YES on a warning box. About $894 million left.
It was Citibank's own money, three years before the loan was due.
On 11 August 2020 Citi, which ran a Revlon loan for its lenders, meant to pay the lenders about $7.8 million of interest. In Flexcube, Citi's loan software, every payment went out as a wire unless someone stopped it, and stopping it took three fields pointed at an internal account. The team set one. Three people approved it, and all three believed one field was enough, the court found.
At the last step the reviewer's screen warned that the money was set to leave the bank: "Account used is Wire Account and Funds will be sent out of the bank. Do you want to continue?" He meant to release the interest, so he clicked YES.
Managers for about 200 lenders returned around $385 million. Ten firms, for lenders owed about $500 million, refused. In February 2021 a federal judge let their clients keep it. In September 2022 the appeals court set that ruling aside: the firms, it said, should have called Citi to check.
If you approve payments at work: three reviewers shared one wrong assumption, and the final warning showed no amount.
One-minute true story. AI-generated illustration with narration by an AI voice.
Does your approval screen show the amount before someone clicks YES?
What the captions say
- Citibank's reviewer clicked YES on a warning box. About $894 million left. But did you know who a judge let keep it?
- Citibank handled a loan to Revlon, the make-up company. That evening, Citi meant to pay the lenders about $7.8 million of interest.
- But the loan software, Flexcube, wired out every payment by default, even the principal, not due for three years.
- To keep it in, three fields had to point to an internal account. That evening, the worker set only one.
- A senior manager approved it: "Looks good, please proceed."
- Then a warning came up: "Funds will be sent out of the bank. Do you want to continue?"
- It showed no amount. He meant to send the interest, so he clicked YES.
- Next morning, they found the whole principal had gone to 315 lenders.
- About 200 returned it. Ten firms, for lenders owed about $500 million, refused.
- In February 2021, a federal judge ruled their clients could keep it.
- But in 2022, an appeals court vacated that ruling.
- Would your team have clicked YES?
