Wachovia Securities

Louis, Missouri, is the second largest brokerage firm in the United States as of October 1, 2007 with $1.17 trillion retail client assets under management.
It still remains a subsidiary of Wachovia Corporation along with A.G. Edwards and Evergreen Investments


History
Wachovia Securities was created by a merger of the banking arms of First Union Corporation and Wachovia Corporation. At First Union, it began as the investment firm of J.C.Wheat fostered growth through mergers, including the 1971 merger with First Securities that created Wheat First Securities, Inc. and the 1988 merger with Butcher & Singer, a successful Philadelphia-based securities firm established in 1910; the firm then became known as Wheat First Butcher Singer.In August 1997, the privately held Wheat First Butcher Singer agreed to be acquired for just under $500 million by the Charlotte, North Carolina-based First Union bank. The brokerage firm changed its name to Wheat First Union, reflecting its newly acquired status.On the Wachovia side, Wachovia Corporation acquired the brokerage firm Interstate Johnson Lane in April 1999, and changed the name to IJL Wachovia.
Prudential Securities purchase
Wachovia Securities and the Prudential Securities Division of Prudential Financial combined to form the new Wachovia Securities on July 1, 2003. Wachovia owns 62% of this entity, while Prudential Financial owns 38%. At the time, the new firm had client assets of $532.1 billion, making it the nation's third largest full service retail brokerage firm based on assets.
A.The new firm is the second largest brokerage firm in the United States.