Citi Ventures Scores New Leader

In management news tied to Citigroup’s Citi Ventures, which invests in FinTech, Vanessa Colella has been promoted to lead the Citi unit.

Reuters reported that the promotion comes as Colella has been at Citi Ventures since 2013. She will ascend to the new position at the beginning of the year and will also take on the role of chief innovation officer. She takes the spot as Citi Venture’s CEO and founder, Debby Hopkins, will retire at the end of this year. Hopkins announced her intention to retire in June. The unit was founded in 2010. Reuters noted the ventures unit invests in FinTech but also brings its investee firms to its own banking relationships. One notable venture it has banked has been payments processor Square. Others have included blockchain firm Chain and financial service firm Betterment.