Cost cuts and share buybacks boosted results at Citigroup and Goldman Sachs, but that’s no way to grow a bank over the long term. In the first quarter, revenue fell by 2% from a year earlier at Citigroup and 13% from a year earlier at Goldman on tough market conditions. Discipline on costs saved the day. Total operating expenses declined by 3% at Citigroup and by 11% at Goldman. That, combined with share repurchases worth $4.1 billion at Citigroup and $1.25 billion at Goldman contributed to decent earnings-per-share figures.

Source: Wall Street Journal April 15, 2019 15:11 UTC