Consumer complaint received 2023-03-10
Company: CITIBANK, N.A.
State: TX
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Savings account
Issue: Managing an account
Sub-issue: Deposits and withdrawals

Complaint:
I am writing to file a complaint against Citibank for their handling of my savings account. On XX/XX/2022, I opened a savings account with Citibank in order to temporarily store a large sum of money while I planned where to invest it. When opening the account, I transferred {$1000.00} to my account. On XX/XX/XXXX and XXXX, XXXX, I transferred two rounds of {$100000.00} each from my XXXX account to Citibank totaling {$200000.00}. Shortly after transferred {$10000.00} out of my account to XXXX XXXX. This left me with {$190000.00} sitting in my Citibank account. 
To my surprise, on XX/XX/2022, I received written notice that my account was being terminated by Citibank and that all funds would be returned to me within XXXX business days. Despite making numerous calls to Citibank and speaking with different agents about why this occurred, I was given conflicting information each time, causing further confusion and concern. 
One agent falsely claimed that the Citibank couldnt verify the transfer and had returned my {$190000.00} money to my XXXX account. Another agent claimed that the transferred funds were not under the same name as my Citibank account, so Citibank never accepted the money from the ACH transfer in the first place, which was also untrue. A third agent informed me that my account was under investigation by a third party, which was a surprising development. A fourth agent told me that I would not receive my {$190000.00} back. After the 60 business day mark passed, I still heard nothing and it was only when I called again that an agent told me they would escalate the issue. Despite this, I have still not heard any further updates from Citibank and my money has been frozen by the bank for almost XXXX months at this point. To date, the only confirmation I have received that Citibank even still possesses my money ( despite what customer service agents told me ), is through a Form 1099 that I received from Citibank in the last few weeks with interest income paid to me from my savings account. 
I have also discovered that I am not the only person who has faced such issues with Citibank this is a pervasive issue. I found numerous complaints online from customers who have had their accounts terminated without valid reasons, and with little or no information about the status of their funds. Some consumers have lost access to their money for more than XXXX  months. 
I am now requesting that Citibank return my hard-earned money, which totals {$190000.00}, with interest as soon as possible. The stress and worry caused by this ordeal have been immense and unacceptable, and it is unacceptable that Citibank has not provided me with clear and consistent information regarding the status of my funds or in their investigation process. Being custodians and trusted intermediaries of public money, Citibank is bound to be transparent and accountable to its customers, and they have utterly failed. My trust in Citibank has been destroyed, and I will be spreading the word to help others avoid the pain that this incident has caused me. 
I am filing this complaint with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in the hope that Citibank can be held accountable for their actions and to prevent others from facing similar issues in the future. Citibank must be held accountable for their actions.

Company public response: Company has responded to the consumer and the CFPB and chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation