Tuesday: Todd S. Thomson is ousted “as head of global wealth management” at Citigroup. “There have been concerns within the bank about Mr. Thomson’s use of Citigroup corporate jets, including at least one occasion when he used the jet to ferry Maria Bartiromo, a correspondent for CNBC, to an event in Asia.
“Maria sought and received approval in advance to fly to Asia on Citi’s jet. Billing was handled between CNBC’s corporate parent and Citi,” CNBC says.
Wednesday: The flight cost Citigroup “almost $50,000;” “A CNBC spokesman said that Bartiromo only paid ‘prevailing commercial rates’ for her seat, approximately $3,000 to $4,000… Bartiromo sought and received approval in advance before hopping the pricey flight on one of Citi’s jets, which gave her an opportunity for ‘source development.’“
John Gibson asks: “Why could Citi want to treat a financial journalist to this kind of high-octane perk? Why would GE allow their CNBC financial journalist to be placed in this position of a possible conflict of interest?”
Thursday: “Now come reports that recently ousted wealth management chief Todd Thomson was providing air transportation, and perhaps something more, to CNBC anchor Maria Bartiromo. Thomson appears to have created a money honey division inside the company — creating a TV show and, apparently, a travel agency.”
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