Two multinational financial giants have snubbed an official request to appear before the Dáil’s spending watchdog to answer questions over corporate tax loopholes.

Pre-tax profits at the main Irish arm of Citibank last year declined by 8% to $757.68m (€686.5m).

Citigroup is planning to shift the headquarters of its European retail banking operation to Dublin from London to benefit from lower costs and capital requirements.

The Irish-based division of world banking giant Citigroup has been fined €550,000 for breaching reporting rules on cash flows.