HISTORICAL FINANCIAL PRESS RELEASES

First Union Contact: Fran Durst
(908) 598-3062

Contact: Mary Beth Navarro
(704) 374-2292

January 28, 2003
Wachovia Announces Expansion of its Financial Center Network Into Manhattan
Wachovia plans to open 12 financial centers over the next 18-24 months

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Wachovia Corporation, created through the September 2001 merger of First Union and Wachovia, announced today the expansion of its financial center network in Manhattan. Wachovia plans to open 12 financial centers in Manhattan over the next 18-24 months.

The first financial centers will open this summer. The timing will coincide with the introduction of the Wachovia brand to the New York, New Jersey and Connecticut markets as part of the First Union/Wachovia merger integration, which creates the largest financial center network on the East Coast.

"These new locations will help us better serve the more than 100,000 existing First Union customers who commute to Manhattan for work each day, and it also will help us acquire new customers," said Ben Jenkins, head of Wachovia's General Bank.

Under the First Union brand name, Wachovia currently serves customers in suburban New York, New Jersey and Connecticut but does not have financial center locations in New York City's core.

"We are thrilled to enter the Manhattan market and to hold a presence in one of the greatest cities in the world," said Jim Fitzgerald, First Union's New York and Connecticut regional president. "The expansion of our financial center network into Manhattan is a terrific opportunity to bring Wachovia's distinct products and services to a new customer base, while continuing to better serve our existing customers who commute to Manhattan for work or are visiting the city's vast attractions."

Leases have been signed for financial centers at 49 Rockefeller Plaza and 360 Madison Avenue. Six others will be located in about a 100-block area that centers on Rockefeller Center in Midtown Manhattan. From those locations, Wachovia will be able to reach the 500,000 people who work in that area each day. Four more financial centers are planned for other areas of Manhattan.

While Wachovia has not had a retail bank presence in Manhattan, the companies' other lines of business have been serving New York City retail clients. Located at 520 Madison Avenue, Wachovia's team of 11 Wealth Management advisors provides services including private banking; debt solutions; investment management; financial and tax planning; trust and estate planning and administration; charitable services and insurance solutions. Also, Wachovia Securities Brokerage Group has teams including 100 financial advisors located at One Penn Plaza and 12 East 49th Street.

The 12 new financial centers will increase Wachovia's total employment ranks in the New York metropolitan area to almost 1,000. Currently about 800 Wachovia employees work in Manhattan and support the company's Corporate and Investment Banking, Wealth Management, Capital Management, and General Bank businesses. Wachovia Securities, a unit of Wachovia's Corporate and Investment Bank, has been operating in New York City for more than five years. The company also has a securities processing and trade settlement operation in Manhattan, and its OFFITBANK Investment Management Group has been operating in the city for 20 years.

As part of Wachovia's entry into Manhattan, it also will add 25 more ATMs in the city, in addition to more than 40 ATMs at the new financial center locations. Wachovia already operates about 20 ATMs under the First Union brand name in prominent locations in New York City, including Penn Station and LaGuardia and JFK airports.

The New York entry is part of an overall strategy to refine the company's financial center and ATM network to attract new customers and respond to changing demographics in the company's footprint. Over the next three years, Wachovia plans to build at least 30 new financial centers per year within its geographic market areas.

About Wachovia Corporation
Wachovia Corporation (NYSE:WB), created through the September 1, 2001, merger of First Union and Wachovia, had assets of $342 billion and stockholders' equity of $32 billion at December 31, 2002. Wachovia is a leading provider of financial services to retail, brokerage and corporate customers throughout the East Coast and the nation. The company operates full-service banking offices under the First Union and Wachovia names in 11 East Coast states and Washington, D.C., and offers full-service brokerage with offices in 49 of the 50 states. Global services are provided through more than 30 international offices. Online banking and brokerage products and services are available through wachovia.com.

Email This Page

Printer Friendly Version

Wachovia common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the ticker symbol WB. Before the September 1, 2001, merger of First Union and the former Wachovia, the common stock traded on the NYSE as FTU.

Information on this site dated after September 1, 2001, is provided under the Wachovia name, while historical information dated before September 1, 2001, is provided under the First Union name. Please note that historical information may have become out of date and should not be considered current. Wachovia does not undertake any obligation to update the information as a result of new information or subsequent developments. In addition, any forward-looking information is subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations. Factors that could cause results to differ from expectations may be found in Wachovia's reports filed with the SEC.