Lender Sues Citigroup Over Similar Name

City Financial, a privately held lender based in Orange, sued Citigroup Inc., the nation’s biggest financial services company, for allegedly using a similar name to promote Citigroup’s commercial credit business.

City Financial said it has been inundated with phone calls and letters from consumers, who confused it with Citigroup’s CitiFinancial Credit Co.

City Financial, estimating it will suffer more than $125 million in damages, is seeking a court order to prohibit Citigroup from using the “CitiFinancial” name, according to the lawsuit, which was filed Tuesday in federal court in Santa Ana.

“The City Financial trademark belongs exclusively to us,” said City Financial President Larry Rose.

New York-based Citigroup hasn’t seen the suit yet and therefore declined comment on it, said company spokeswoman Susan Weeks.