8-K

UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 8-K

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): March 20, 2008

CIT GROUP INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Delaware	001-31369	65-1051192
(State or other jurisdiction of Identification No.)	(Commission File Number)	(IRS Employer incorporation)

505 Fifth Avenue
New York, New York 10017 (Address of registrant’s principal executive office)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (212) 771-0505

Not Applicable
(Former Name or Former Address, if Changed Since Last Report)

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions (see General Instruction A.2. below):

[   ] Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

[   ] Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

[   ] Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

[   ] Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

 

Section 2 – Financial Information

Section 8 – Other Events

Item 8.01. Other Events.

        This Current Report on Form 8-K includes as an exhibit a press release, dated March 20, 2008, reporting that the Company is drawing upon its $7.3 billion in unsecured U.S. bank credit facilities and will use the proceeds to repay debt maturing in 2008, including commercial paper, and provide financing to its core commercial franchises. The press release is attached as Exhibit 99.1.

Section 9 - Financial Statements and Exhibits

Item 9.01. Financial Statements and Exhibits.

(d) Exhibits.

99.1 Press release issued by CIT Group Inc. on March 20, 2008.

        This document contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All forward-looking statements (including statements regarding future financial and operating results) involve risks, uncertainties and contingencies, many of which are beyond CIT’s control, which may cause actual results, performance, or achievements to differ materially from anticipated results, performance, or achievements. All statements contained in this document that are not clearly historical in nature are forward-looking, and the words “anticipate,” “believe,” “expect,” “estimate,” “plan,” and similar expressions are generally intended to identify forward-looking statements. Economic, business, funding market, competitive and/or regulatory factors, among others, affecting CIT’s businesses are examples of factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. More detailed information about these factors are described in CIT’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2007. CIT is under no obligation to (and expressly disclaims any such obligation to) update or alter its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

 

2

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

CIT GROUP INC. (Registrant)
By:	/s/ William J. Taylor
	William J. Taylor Executive Vice President, Controller & Principal Accounting Officer

Dated: March 20, 2008

 

EX-99.1

Exhibit 99.1

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CIT TAKES LIQUIDITY ACTION

        NEW YORK – March 20, 2008 – CIT Group Inc. (NYSE: CIT), a leading global commercial finance company, today announced that it is drawing upon its $7.3 billion in unsecured U.S. bank credit facilities. The Company will use the proceeds to repay debt maturing in 2008, including commercial paper, and provide financing to its core commercial franchises. Over the near term, the Company will continue to actively seek additional funding sources, as well as explore and execute on the sale of non-strategic assets and/or business lines.

        “Our decision today is a result of the protracted disruption in the capital markets as well as recent actions by the rating agencies,” said Jeffrey M. Peek, Chairman and CEO. “It provides us with added flexibility and ensures that our clients have the financing they need to operate and grow their businesses successfully. We are actively positioning CIT to maximize value by optimizing our business portfolio and sizing our company to market conditions.”

        Mr. Peek and Joseph M. Leone, Chief Financial Officer, will host a conference call at 4:00 PM EDT today, Thursday, March 20, 2008.

Call-in Number:

U.S. & Canada
International
Access code 866-825-3308
617-213-8062
CIT Group

Webcast: http://ir.cit.com

        Please dial-in to the call or link to the webcast at least 10 minutes prior to register or download any necessary software. A replay of the call and webcast will be available until 11:59 PM EDT on March 27, 2008.

Replay Number:

U.S. & Canada
International
Access Code 888-286-8010
617-801-6888
54303267

Webcast Replay: http://ir.cit.com

        Individuals interested in receiving future updates on CIT via e-mail can register at http://newsalerts.cit.com.

About CIT

CIT (NYSE: CIT) is a global commercial finance company that provides financial products and advisory services to more than one million customers in over 50 countries across 30 industries. A leader in middle market financing, CIT has more than $80 billion in managed assets and provides financial solutions for more than half of the Fortune 1000. A member of the S&P 500 and Fortune 500, it maintains leading positions in asset-based, cash flow and Small Business Administration lending, equipment leasing, vendor financing and factoring. The CIT brand platform, Capital Redefined, articulates its value proposition of providing its customers with the relationship, intellectual and financial capital to yield infinite possibilities. Founded in 1908, CIT is celebrating its Centennial throughout 2008. www.cit.com

Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All forward-looking statements (including statements regarding future financial and operating results) involve risks, uncertainties and contingencies, many of which are beyond CIT’s control, which may cause actual results, performance, or achievements to differ materially from anticipated results, performance, or achievements. All statements contained in this release that are not clearly historical in nature are forward-looking, and the words “anticipate,” “believe,” “expect,” “estimate,” “plan,” “target,” and similar expressions are generally intended to identify forward-looking statements. Economic, business, funding market, competitive and/or regulatory factors, among others, affecting CIT’s businesses are examples of factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. More detailed information about these factors are described in CIT’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2007. CIT is under no obligation to (and expressly disclaims any such obligation to) update or alter its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. This release includes certain non-GAAP financial measures as defined under SEC rules. As required by SEC rules, we have provided a reconciliation of those measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures, which is available with this release and on our website at http://ir.cit.com.

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CIT MEDIA RELATIONS:
C. Curtis Ritter
Director of External Communications & Media Relations
(212) 461-7711
curt.ritter@cit.com

CIT INVESTOR RELATIONS:
Steve Klimas
(973) 535-3769
steve.klimas@cit.com