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New York’s Attorney General sued Citibank, N.A. on January 30, 2024, alleging that the bank failed to protect customers from online-account fraud and unlawfully denied reimbursement to some victims. A federal judge allowed the state’s core Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA) claim to proceed in January 2025, but the court did not find that Citi’s alleged conduct occurred. In April 2025, the case was stayed while Citi pursued an interlocutory appeal; the available procedural record here does not establish a later outcome.

What New York alleges Citi did

New York Attorney General Letitia James’s office (OAG) says Citibank’s online-banking safeguards were inadequate, its response to signs of fraud was ineffective, and the bank misled customers about their rights after accounts were compromised. The state also alleges that Citi unlawfully denied reimbursement claims. These are allegations in the OAG’s announcement and complaint, not findings that a court has established as fact. OAG announcement

  • Insufficient account protections: The OAG says the bank did not adequately guard against account takeovers.
  • Missed warning signs: The state points to activity such as logins from unrecognized devices or new locations and changes to usernames or passwords as signals that should have prompted a response. OAG account of alleged warning signs
  • Reimbursement denials and customer explanations: The OAG alleges that Citi wrongly denied some fraud claims and gave customers misleading information about their rights.

The OAG says customers lost millions of dollars, in some cases their life savings. The cited announcements do not provide a specific aggregate total that can be treated as a verified case figure. OAG announcement

One customer example cited by the state

The OAG describes a customer who was allegedly tricked into calling a fraudulent support number and then lost access to her account. According to the state, Citi approved a second wire transfer of $35,000 without contacting her directly. The OAG says the customer lost nearly everything she had saved. This is one alleged scenario, not a description of every customer’s experience or a measure of total losses. OAG account of customer example

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What the court decided—and what it did not

A central legal issue is whether the EFTA and its implementing Regulation E can protect consumers when unauthorized debits from consumer accounts are connected to wire transfers. New York argued that the transfers at issue qualified as unauthorized electronic fund transfers. Citi argued that a statutory exclusion barred the claim.

On January 21, 2025, the court rejected Citi’s argument that the exclusion necessarily barred the state’s core EFTA claim, holding that EFTA could apply to a fraudulent payment order debited from a consumer account in connection with a wire transfer. The court dismissed other parts of the case. That ruling addressed whether the claim could proceed; it did not decide that the allegations were true or order Citi to reimburse customers. Court’s January 21, 2025 order

Case timeline and last verified procedural status

Date What happened
January 30, 2024 The New York Attorney General filed suit against Citibank, N.A. in federal court. OAG announcement
January 21, 2025 The court allowed the core EFTA claim to continue and dismissed other parts of the case. Court order
April 22, 2025 The court certified the EFTA question for interlocutory appeal and stayed the action pending appeal. The latest procedural source available for this account is dated April 22, 2025; it does not establish a later appellate outcome or docket status. April 22, 2025 order

What New York is asking for

The OAG seeks an order stopping the practices it describes, restitution for victims who were denied reimbursement over the prior six years, penalties, and disgorgement. These are remedies the state has requested; they are not an award, settlement, or repayment requirement already imposed by the court. OAG description of requested relief

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What customers affected by a banking scam can do

The OAG’s January 2024 announcement directs consumers who lost money to scammers accessing online or mobile banking to report their experience to the OAG Consumer Frauds Bureau. Its reporting channel does not determine whether a particular person qualifies for reimbursement in this case. OAG consumer reporting information

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