Citigroup to stiff exiting executives

In an exclusive report, The Wall Street Journal writes that "Citigroup Inc. (C) has told about five former top executives that it won't pay them tens of millions of dollars in promised severance payouts."

Citigroup clearly wants to avoid the negative publicity of making huge payments to departed management, especially because it has taken so much TARP money, but it does have contracts with the people who left and it appears that the bank is simply willing to renege on them. While the bank's viewpoint may be compelling, its ethics are not.