Citigroup said on Thursday night it would be forced to consolidate $49bn of assets in off-balance sheet vehicles, putting further strain on its overstretched finances.

The move is embarrassing for Citi, which has insisted it had no intention to do anything that would require it to consolidate them. But in a statement on Thursday night, it said it had decided to provide a support facility to the SIVs because of a recent warning by Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s of possible downgrades in their credit ratings. Downgrades would make it more difficult for the SIVs to continue to fund themselves by issuing commercial paper and medium-term notes.