Wells Fargo to Buy Comerica 401(k) Business
May 4, 2009 by Stephen Kersey
Filed under Finance
Wells Fargo announced on Monday that its subsidiary Wachovia Bank will purchase the 401(k) business from Texas-based Comerica Bank. They will acquire the defined contribution plan recordkeeping business this quarter.
This business provides recordkeeping to 250 retirement plans that have nearly 100,000 participants. The business manages approximately $3.4 billion in assets.
Image: TheTruthAbout (flickr)
“This acquisition supports our goal of being a leading provider of retirement solutions in the U.S. market and shows our strong commitment to building an industry-leading retirement business,” said John Papadopulos, president of the retirement services group at Wells Fargo. “Comerica Bank customers already use our recordkeeping platform so this transaction will be seamless.”
As a result of the acquistion, Comerica Bank will no longer offer its self-branded 401(k) products, however Comerica Securities will be able to continue to distribute third party 401(k) products.
The announcement of this acquistion came on the same day that federal regulators told Wells Fargo to improve its finances after the “stress tests” indicated the bank will have trouble surviving a deeper recession. Both Bank of America and Citigroup will be asked to raise money as well, according to The Associated Press.
