Wachovia Integration Proceeds Smoothly
Acquisition Expands Services and Enhances Local Delivery

The integration of Wachovia's institutional custody business with U.S. Bancorp was completed successfully in early October 2006.

"The integration took about one year and went very smoothly," says Jeff Kerr, senior vice president, national manager in Minneapolis. "The acquisition increased our scale, doubled our institutional custody business and expanded our footprint into the Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.

"We've also gained access to greater referral opportunities through the Wachovia banker network," he adds. "Although we'll continue to focus on the middle market, we now have the scale that allows us to capture some larger market opportunities if the fit is right."

Bill Blosky, senior vice president, region manager, U.S. Bank Institutional Trust & Custody in Milwaukee, agrees that the integration went well. "When we first explored the possibility of the acquisition, we found that the culture and philosophy of the two organizations were similar," he says. "Joining forces was the logical extension to pursue our mutual goals of providing high-quality custody services to the middle market."

With the acquisition, U.S. Bank Institutional Trust & Custody has expanded its geographical presence and mix of clients, and now has more than $900 billion in assets under administration.

Growth Offers Opportunity for Continued Enhancements
According to Blosky, the conversion means that U.S. Bank will be able to devote significantly greater resources to technology and service enhancements for institutional custody customers. "We've always been proactive and oriented to enhancing our capabilities, but this takes us to a whole new level," Blosky says.

"Another positive result is that we were able to retain almost all of the Wachovia institutional custody account managers (AMs) and relationship managers (RMs)," Blosky says. "This is a people business, and we were fortunate to have a ready-made group of experienced, seasoned employees familiar with the business and their local markets. Part of what made this acquisition so successful was this great group of people. Keeping the Wachovia employees reinforces the U.S. Bank commitment to local service delivery."

According to Ron Richter, vice president, U.S. Bank Institutional Trust & Custody, Cincinnati, the technical conversion to the U.S. Bank trust accounting system was nearly flawless. "The accounts and data came over as expected," he says. "When it came time to flip the switch, we were confident that we had accurate and complete data, and clients had the tools they needed after the conversion to conduct business with us.

 "We have to give considerable credit to the AMs and RMs from Wachovia for allaying any customer concerns. They did a wonderful job of talking with their clients and keeping them informed of the status of the conversion. For the most part, former Wachovia customers were very comfortable with the transition, and it was transparent to our existing customers."

Added Benefits
The acquisition has also enhanced the global capabilities of U.S. Bank Institutional Trust & Custody. "Wachovia's bankers had made some inroads into the global market, serving as custodian for offshore organizations looking for investments within the U.S.," Blosky says. "So now we've developed a network of custody clients outside the domestic marketplace."

Former Wachovia customers will benefit from a more efficient system, according to Richter. "Wachovia supported its clients on two separate trust accounting systems, so resources had to be divided between two complete entities," Richter says. "Now everyone is on the consolidated U.S. Bank platform, so we can focus on providing the best service through that channel."

Other benefits for customers include:

• An enhanced reporting product. Through TrustNow Essentials, customers can now request real-time reports delivered to them electronically within minutes.
• Ten new offices, primarily in the mid-Atlantic and Southeast, to provide local service.
• Two additional back-office operations centers, in Philadelphia and Winston-Salem, N.C.
• Multi-currency reporting for global customers.

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