Former Citi Bankers Deny Allegations of Taking Trade Secrets to BMO

​Two former Citigroup bankers, John Mitchell and Benjamin Carr, have rejected accusations that they misappropriated confidential client data when they moved to the Bank of Montreal (BMO) last month. In a legal filing made on Monday, the bankers dismissed the allegations, calling them unfounded and based on "speculative" claims. Mitchell and Carr, who joined BMO's law firm wealth management group, contend that the lawsuit brought by Citi lacks merit.

The legal dispute stems from a lawsuit filed by Citigroup earlier this month, in which the bank claims Mitchell and Carr took sensitive business information when transitioning to BMO. Citi accuses the two bankers of using proprietary client data, including details about cash balances and deposit maturity dates, to solicit clients for BMO's services. Citi is seeking a temporary restraining order to prevent the duo from using any allegedly stolen information until an arbitration panel reviews the case.

The departure of Mitchell, a managing director, and Carr, a senior vice president, along with around 18 other professionals from Citi's Law Firm Group, occurred in early October. At Citi, Mitchell managed approximately $497 million in assets across 450 law firms, while Carr handled $152 million for about 570 firms. Their transfer to BMO's U.S. Wealth Management division, specializing in law firm services, raised concerns that Citi's confidential data may have been improperly shared.

The lawsuit includes specific allegations, including that Carr accessed Citi's internal client database just days before resigning, and Mitchell reportedly used this information to convince a client to switch banks. While Citi is pursuing further action through both legal and arbitration channels, BMO has yet to comment on the case in detail, citing the ongoing legal proceedings.