Citi Life, Malév-Citibank and Shell-Citibank co-brand cardholders who subscribe to Citibank's SMS Alert Service for monitoring card transactions have automated access to this free service. The service can be conveniently activated by calling the 24-hour CitiPhone Banking hotline.

Batara Sianturi, Citi Country Officer for Hungary, said: "With the launch of the secure Internet transactions service, we continue our tradition of being the first to bring innovative solutions to our customers. This new service is another step in our strategy to become the world's digital bank. We have already launched a great number of new and innovative services in 2011. This marks the 25th anniversary of serving our clients and the community in Hungary with such products as the unique multi-partner Citi Life Card, the Citibank Mobile Banking that brings secure banking into the hands of our customers and the unique CitiChat online customer service, among others. We are always putting clients at the center of our innovations, and we are constantly working to bring our customers convenient banking solutions in Hungary."

Jon Wiggins, Consumer Business Manager for Hungary, said, "We are proud to have brought another value-added service to our customers in Hungary by leveraging Citi's unmatched global network and experience. By having a unique code sent very quickly to the mobile phone of the customer in an SMS text message, this service enhances the security of online purchases but provides a convenient and easy way to enhance the positive client experience that is of key importance at Citibank Hungary."

Participating online merchants are identified by the following on the website: "MasterCard Secure Code" and "Verified by VISA."

When purchasing items from merchants who do not yet participate in the Secure Code Network, the process remains unchanged: Customers need to provide only the card data with no code. Other cards in the Citibank portfolio will also be linked to this service in the next few months.