U.S. Treasury says to put money into Citigroup

WASHINGTON Nov 23 (Reuters) - The U.S. Treasury Department announced late on Sunday it was investing $20 billion in struggling Citigroup Inc (C.N) as one of a series of actions to help the beleaguered bank and it will take preferred shares in it.

In a late-night announcement after a weekend of talks about what to do to help Citigroup, Treasury also said it and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. will provide protection against losses in a pool of about $306-billion worth of loans and securities on Citigroup's balance sheet.

Treasury said the U.S. Federal Reserve stood ready to backstop any additional risk in the asset pool through an offer of a non-recourse loan.

(Reporting by Glenn Somerville)