In his letter to shareholders, General Electric CEO Jeff Immelt noted that GE remains unique in the sense of combining industrial strength with a significant financial services capability. Immelt said, “To be clear, GE is an industrial company first and foremost. GE Capital must enhance our industrial competitiveness, not detract from it. We see a significant advantage in our ability to bring financial solutions to industries like aviation, energy and healthcare. But make no mistake, the ultimate size of GE Capital will be based on competitiveness, returns and the impact of regulation on the entire company.”

Immelt added, “We innovate with new business models. Our customers want more flexibility, converting capital investments to operating expenses. We can apply our expertise in GE Capital to enhance the value of our industrial offerings. By packaging financing with high-tech products, we can deliver customer value in markets like healthcare, oil and gas and distributed power.”

To read the full text of Jeff Immelts letter to shareholders, click here.