Well, it's that time again: Time to announce some more merger-related news! And while it doesn't include physical changes to signs and branches, it does include the very important topic of combining bank charters. 
What's a bank charter? Good question. A bank charter is a document issued by the Federal or state government that gives a bank the authority and regulatory approval to operate as a financial institution. National banks like Wells Fargo and Wachovia must have charter issued by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to run their banking businesses.
So what's the reason for combining them?
Well, combining bank charters is a key next step in integrating the banking businesses of Wells Fargo and Wachovia. With one charter we can provide banking customers more access and convenience as banking stores' systems are integrated over time. Eventually, our more than 20 million retail bank households will be able to do their banking in over 6,600 banking stores throughout 39 states and the District of Columbia. This will happen as the banking states convert beginning with Colorado in November and continuing throughout 2010 and 2011 in other states.
How will combining the charters affect how you do banking business with us?
It won't change how you do business with Wells Fargo or Wachovia. All of you should continue banking as you are today — just use the same bank accounts, credit cards, ATM/check cards and banking office. Any changes to these products will be communicated separately well in advance of any changes. You'll continue to see the Wachovia name in many places until those banking stores' systems are integrated with Wells Fargo.
As always, if you have any additional questions about how combining bank charters may affect you, please feel free to ask! In the meantime, here are some more Q&A's that should help....
Q: So what's happening exactly?
A: Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. applied to the OCC to merge the charters of Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., Wachovia Bank, N.A. and Wachovia Bank of Delaware, N.A. effective on March 20, 2010. As a result, pending OCC approval and as of March 20, 2010, Wachovia Bank, N.A. and Wachovia Bank Delaware, N.A. will be combined under one bank, Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.
Q: Does this mean all conversions of banking stores, signage, and accounts will happen by March 20, 2010?
A: No. We'll convert banking stores throughout 2010 and into 2011. On March 20, 2010 all deposit accounts, loans and credit cards at Wells Fargo Bank, Wachovia Bank and Wachovia Bank of Delaware will be maintained in one charter: Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.
Q: So will the Wachovia name go away as of March 20, 2010?
A: No. Even though Wachovia Bank, N.A. and Wachovia Bank of Delaware, N.A will no longer be separately chartered banks as of March 20, 2010, Wells Fargo will own the rights to the "Wachovia" name and brand and can continue to use "Wachovia" when referring to existing Wachovia stores, accounts and products during the period before these stores are converted and fully integrated with Wells Fargo.
Q: How will customers like me be notified?
A: Public announcement will be made in 25 newspapers across the country with the application to the OCC. Customers with accounts in Wachovia Bank N.A. and Wachovia Bank of Delaware N.A. will be notified directly as we get closer to the time when the charters are combined.
Assuming that the application goes through and the chargers are merged on March 20, does this mean that the separate FDIC coverage will end on that date?
Steve, thanks for your note. You ask a good questions. The short answer is: it depends. For specific detials, read below.
Once the bank charters are combined on March 20, 2010, customers’ deposits will reside within one bank, Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., and special FDIC rules will apply as follows:
Any deposits a customer has with Wachovia Bank, N.A. as of March 20, 2010 will be separately insured by the FDIC for 6 months (until September 20, 2010) from any deposits the customer may have with Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. and/or Wachovia Bank of Delaware, N.A.
Any deposits a customer has with Wachovia Bank of Delaware, N.A. as of March 20, 2010 will be separately insured by the FDIC for 6 months (until September 20, 2010) from any deposits the customer may have with Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. and/or Wachovia Bank, N.A.
If a customer has any time deposit accounts (CDs) with a maturity date after September 20, 2010 at either Wachovia Bank, N.A. or Wachovia Bank of Delaware, N.A., then their separate deposit insurance for such time deposit accounts will continue until the first maturity date after September 20, 2010.
If a customer has a time deposit account at either Wachovia Bank, N.A. or Wachovia Bank of Delaware, N.A. that matures after March 20, 2010 but before September 20, 2010 and the customer renews it for the same term and same amount (either with or without accrued interest), then the separate deposit insurance will continue until the first maturity date that occurs after September 20, 2010. If the customer elects not to renew the time deposit account or renew it for a different term and/or a different amount, then the funds in such time deposit account will be separately insured until September 20, 2010.
I Like this Wells Fargo & Wachovia Commerical I would like to see on tv.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8mwxDf8U5I&feature=player_embedded
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I have over $300,000 in Wachovia accounts, why is Wells Fargo all of a sudden sending me a $40 bill for having an IRA? Wachovia never did this.
Seems like a very real sales prevention technique to me.
Thanks for the insight.
I have a WF account and just moved to DC. When do you expect I'll be able to make deposits into my WF account at the Wachovia branches here? Thanks.
This merger is appalling. It is taking forever! I started with Germantown Saving Bank, so I have been through merger upon merger. I keep asking Wells Fargo Bank when the personal accounts will allow me to use the Wachovia accounts for full banking, they tell me to open a WF account and get rid of the Wachovia account. Why when they are the same bank? As it is I have to drive 78 miles both ways to use Wachovia in Tucson, AZ from Sierra Vista, AZ to use the full service banking. I do not bother. Is this Merger going to fall through? If I am going to change accounts to WF as their associates state, I will go to Bank of American. I want a resolution because something does not seem correct. The Wells Fargo CEO speaks on the Merger but says nothing. Being a military retiree, I do not have a warm fuzzy about this entire situation. It is time for Wells Fargo to take a Proactive Approach rather than a Reactive Posture that they are currently in!
This is very strange!!! Chase acquired WaMu within the same period as Wells Fargo acquired Wachovia. So why could Chase be so reluctant to switch WaMu branches so much faster? By the end of 2009, all of WaMu will be Chase.
Wow - apparently no one seems to understand the concept of the complexities of merging two banks. They probably run two completely back office programs that even with the best teams in India working around the clock can't get to integrate fast enough. Add to that First Union, er, um, Wachovia's track record of screwing up mergers and it makes sense why Wells is deliberately taking its time. Oh, and the WaMu to Chase bit is being all screwy. So be glad they're taking their time.
Wondering if you can comment on the culture integration of the two companies? I am sure quite a bit of it transcends to your customers.
I am sorry to see Wachovia go away; it was such a great bank. I had Wachovia in Maryland up until about a month ago when I moved to Seattle where I had to move my accout(s) to Wells Fargo as there were no Wachovia's here. Anyhow, I was with Wells Fargo for about a month before leaving to go to Bank of America (which I swore I never would). Wells Fargo charges you for everything and considering the value of my accounts; I was very disappointed. They had fees for their "Rewards Program" which Wachovia did not. Even transfers from my Savings accounts to checking for overdraft protection had fees. I had no issue with the Customer Service, but the fees are appalling. They offered to waive all of the fees (i.e. rewards program, etc.) when I closed my account(s), but I shouldn't have to ask that. I hate to say Bank of America has been pretty good thus far, but Wachovia had been the best bank I have ever dealt with. Perhaps when the transition is done, they will adapt some of Wachovia's pricing models and put the customer first.
I've read in a newspaper article that Wachovia ATMs are going to start changing in Atlanta in as little as two weeks? It looks like the blog is back to its old games of letting things be announced in the news media first, and then posting an article on it after the fact. The same news article said that the retail bank conversions will be done in two stages. First, the signs will be changed, and then the account names and systems will change later (it used the Carolinas as an example-the signs will change in late 2010 and the systems will change in early 2011). Do you plan to have any articles about these important changes?
culture integration will be interesting. it's never fun going through a merger, especially when the culture of one company seems to be so different. eventually, the management team determines what culture will be the best for the company. whether or not that will be the customer friendly focus of wachovia or the cross selling might of wells remains to be seen. let's just hope they don't mess this integration up like they did the first interestate merger that was a mess. they lost my account for two weeks.
Any indication as to when the conversion of Wachovia banking stores will occur in Pa., NJ, and DE?
I bank at PNC (I live near Pittsburgh where there is no Wachovia nor Wells Fargo branches, though I do like PNC.), but I recently started a 401(k) through my job, who has a partnership with Wachovia. I want to comment on some of the intergration timelines.
Chase (which we don't have here in Western PA either, though they are prevalent in Ohio where I go to college at in Youngstown, OH.) was able to intergrate WaMu faster because WaMu failed and was placed under receivership by the FDIC, which makes conversions rather quickly. On the other hand, Wells Fargo bought Wachovia without government involvement, and due to the massive sizes of both companies needs to take time with this. The other major acquisition from last fall, PNC's takeover of National City (which had some government involvement since PNC used TARP funds to buy NatCity), is also being slow since PNC essentially doubled in size from it. Just not even two weeks ago PNC started to convert the National City branches to PNC, and only in a few markets. PNC won't even be done with the NatCity conversion until next June. Another reason that took some tine was because here PNC--which was already the 900-pound gorilla in banking while NatCity was number 2 in market share--had to sell off some NatCity branches to First Niagara Bank by order of the U.S. Department of Justice for antitrust reasons. PNC still ended up with 46% market share in Western PA, up from the already-high 35% share it had here BEFORE the National City deal.
But that is why Wells Fargo is taking it's time. The bigger the bank, the mote accounts needed to convert, and ultimately the longer it will take. Unless it's a bank failure, then the government pretty much forces an immediate conversion of those accounts.
And while I'm posting something, when will my 401(k) be converted from Wachovia to Wells Fargo? And will the combined charter use the pre-existing Wells Fargo charter or the Bank of North America charter that Wachovia got from the merger with First Union, since the Bank of North America had the first bank charter in U.S. history?