Dear Citi Colleagues, Earlier this morning, we announced an exchange offer for our preferred stock that I believe will enhance our capital position and bolster public confidence in Citi, and by extension, our financial system. You will find additional details on the offering in the news release here.

As you've heard me say, we and our regulators were focused on Tier 1 as the capital that supports our businesses-and based on our Tier 1 of 11.9%, we have been very well capitalised. However, there is now a greater focus on tangible common equity (TCE) ratios, and that has translated into a market confidence issue.