Yiting Shen has been named Head of Payments for developing currencies at Citi, based in New York.

The move comes as financial institutions around the world are requiring more and more access to currencies that were formerly considered exotic. Payment values in emerging currencies are growing rapidly as trade flows increase.

"Based on Citi's unique proprietary network and local market presence, its clearing volumes in these currencies have already seen significant growth," says Ebru Pakcan, Global Head of Payments for Citi. "The key objective of this role is to build upon Citi's strength in major currency clearing, and to create functional parity that exists today across US dollars, euro, and yen, with important developing currencies in a robust and scalable manner."

Prior to taking on this new role, Shen was the Head of Strategic Initiatives for Citi's Treasury and Trade Solutions Group, where she championed business model innovations for the firm.

Prior to joining Citi, Shen was an entrepreneur, co-founding an education consulting firm in China, worked with Booz & Company in London specializing in financial services with clients in Middle East, Africa, Korea, China, and India, and also worked in M&A with UBS based in New York. Shen holds an MBA from MIT Sloan School of Management, an MPA from Harvard Kennedy School of Government, an MS in Financial Engineering and a BS from Columbia University.