Wilmington Trust Corporation (NYSE:WL), a leading provider of
specialised trust, agency, and administrative services to corporations
worldwide, announced today the latest expansion of its Corporate
Client Services (CCS) business in Europe with the acquisition of Amaco
(Luxembourg) S.A., a Luxembourg-based supplier of entity management
services. The organisation will be known as Wilmington Trust SP
Services (Luxembourg) S.A.
The acquisition of the Luxembourg business of Amaco Management
Services, a corporate trust provider based in the Netherlands, extends
Wilmington Trust's capabilities for corporate clients and gives it a
physical presence in another major European financial centre.
Wilmington Trust's other European offices are in London, England;
Dublin, Ireland; and Frankfurt, Germany. The acquisition follows
several strategic investments Wilmington Trust made in CCS in 2006,
including the opening of the Frankfurt office, the expansion of its
business in the Cayman Islands through an acquisition, and the
creation of Wilmington Trust Conduit Services, LLC to serve the
collateral administration and reporting needs of collateralized debt
obligations (CDOs), the fastest-growing area of the structured finance
industry.
"Luxembourg's central location in Europe and its favourable legal
and tax environments have long made it an attractive jurisdiction for
corporate business," said Wilmington Trust chairman and CEO Ted T.
Cecala. "Over the past several years, Europe has been an increasingly
significant source of CCS revenue.
"This acquisition builds on that momentum and reflects our
strategy to invest in businesses with excellent growth potential."
Beyond serving as a preferred international jurisdiction for
entity management services, Luxembourg is also an attractive location
for other specialised services that CCS provides to corporate clients
such as investment managers, captive insurance companies, and many
structured finance products, including CDOs. As a result, Wilmington
Trust's presence in Luxembourg is expected to benefit the CCS business
as a whole.
Amaco's entity management services in Luxembourg consist of
management, domiciliation, accounting, and director services for
international holding and finance companies. As independent service
providers, both Amaco (Luxembourg) S.A. and Wilmington Trust's CCS
group are free from potential business conflicts that can arise when
providers also offer investment banking and lending services to their
corporate clients.
"Beyond extending our capabilities in Europe, this acquisition
reinforces our competitive advantage of being an independent,
conflict-free service provider," said Christophe Schroeder, managing
director and head of Wilmington Trust's CCS business in Europe. "This
business approach is highly valued by corporate clients and makes for
a strong cultural fit between our respective organisations."
Amaco (Luxembourg) S.A. employs eight staff members, all of whom
will be retained by Wilmington Trust. Terms of this acquisition were
not disclosed. Its associated revenue and expenses will be
consolidated into Wilmington Trust's financial statements. It is
anticipated that the acquisition will have a neutral effect on
Wilmington Trust's earnings in 2007.
Wilmington Trust's CCS business provides specialised trust,
administrative, and investment management services for national and
multinational institutions. Its entity management services help
clients maintain "nexus," or legal residency, in jurisdictions around
the globe that offer favourable legal and tax environments. Its
capital markets services are integral to many complex financing
structures, including asset-backed securitisations. CCS's retirement
plan services provide trustee and custodial services for pension
plans, 401(k) plans, and other corporate plans.
Wilmington Trust Corporation (NYSE:WL) is a financial services
holding company that provides Regional Banking services throughout the
Delaware Valley region, Wealth Advisory Services for high-net-worth
clients in 36 countries, and Corporate Client Services for
institutional clients in 86 countries. Its wholly owned bank
subsidiary, Wilmington Trust Company, which was founded in 1903, is
one of the largest personal trust providers in the United States and
the leading retail and commercial bank in Delaware. Wilmington Trust
Corporation and its affiliates have offices in California,
Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey,
New York, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Vermont, the Cayman Islands,
the Channel Islands, London, Dublin, Frankfurt, and Luxembourg. For
more information, visit www.wilmingtontrust.com.