Weill: I think there’s no question we didn’t understand the complexity of some of Salomon’s trading businesses. And we bought the company just as the Asian crisis exploded and Korea and Indonesia and Thailand had real troubles. We needed to learn how that affected the liquidity of markets and how many funds were doing the same thing. And when the bell rang, there were no exits. So we got out of that business pretty fast. Now, nine years later, from Salomon Brothers we have one of the great franchises in the business. A lot of the leadership of the whole corporate side of the business came from Salomon Brothers.

Worth: You’ve always seemed to focus on client business. Do you think prop trading has value in a firm like Citi?

Weill: Sure, it has a big value. I think the knowledge base that companies get from operating all around the world and investing for your own account is very important, and offering clients the ability to invest alongside you is important. The world is changing. Having managers who understand those types of markets and who understand balance sheets and derivatives is important. The more diversified you are, the better position you are in to handle changes. If there’s a problem in one area, you’ll have offsetting businesses.

Worth: You will now focus on your philanthropy?

Weill: Between my wife and myself, we’re chairman of five not-for-profits. This is not new—it is something I’ve done for 25 years. We are very busy. She’s told me more than once that shrouds don’t have pockets. We should think about—as long as we’ve got our brains and health—how best to give to the organizations where we think we can make a difference.

Worth: How do you decide which groups to support?

Weill: We believe in concentrating, so it’s not $1,000 or $5,000 to 100 different things. We decide to give to things we feel passionate about in the areas we care about—the arts, health care, education and society.

So tell your readers we’re not looking for any more good ideas! 

Dwight Cass is editor-in-chief of Worth.