The US bank says Lippert will play "a critical role in driving transformational change" across Citi's newly centralised global technology and operations divisions, working closely with Kevin Kessinger, Citi chief operations and technology officer. As a member of Citi's senior leadership committee, Lippert will also oversee the bank's corporate shared services and real estate operations.

Citi CEO Vikram Pandit has set his sights on overhauling the bank's sprawling IT infrastructure as he bids to bring the business back on track after recording billions of dollars of losses and write-downs from the sub-prime crisis and consequent credit crunch. In April, he signalled his intent to slash jobs and cut costs under an ambitious programme to reverse more than a decade of decentralised IT investment.

On the appointment of his new CIO, Pandit says: "Marty's appointment emphasises the importance we place on technology in driving enterprise transformation, and we'll look to him to be a key architect of that change."

Lippert, previously head of global technology and operations at RBC, fills a spot vacated in December, when Marvin Adams moved to a Fidelity Investments unit

During his time at RBC, Lippert oversaw a massive integration programme as the bank expanded its footprint south of the border through a series of big M&A deals.

Kessinger says Citi is looking to Lippert re-engineer the bank's creaking IT infrastructure "by developing technology and operational platforms that are robust, agile, and cost effective. His role will involve the design and deployment of globally integrated solutions that are client-centric, and will reclaim Citi's position as an innovative leader in the financial services industry."