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RBC completes acquisition of Ferris, Baker Watts, Incorporated
Strategic Step Strengthens RBC Wealth Management in the U.S.
MINNEAPOLIS and WASHINGTON D.C., June 20, 2008 —
Royal Bank of Canada (RY on TSX and NYSE) today announced
that it has completed the acquisition of Washington, D.C.-based
Ferris, Baker Watts, Incorporated (FBW).
FBW is a full-service broker-dealer with 42 branch offices
in eight states and the District of Columbia, and approximately
US$19 billion in assets under administration. The firm will
become part of RBC Wealth Management, U.S. Division.
"FBW enhances our wealth management presence in a key
region of the country and adds more than 300 experienced,
professional financial consultants who have a strong customer
service culture that mirrors our own," said John Taft,
head, RBC Wealth Management, U.S. Division.
"We believe that joining RBC, with its global resources
and strong customer support capabilities, greatly expands
the investment services that we will be able to provide our
clients. Both FBW and RBC Wealth Management share the same
philosophy and commitment to focusing on clients' interests
as our top priority," said Roger L. Calvert, president
and CEO of Ferris, Baker Watts.
"The RBC Wealth Management business in the U.S. was
built by combining numerous strong regional brokerage firms
to create the best of two worlds: a small firm culture linked
to the financial strength and global resources of RBC,"
Taft said. "We are proud to welcome FBW's historic franchise
and the talents and capabilities of their investment professionals
to our growing U.S. wealth management platform."
The acquisition enhances the mid-Atlantic presence of RBC
as part of its national wealth management network in the U.S.,
and will establish a new seventh region for RBC Wealth Management
comprised of FBW locations.
About Ferris, Baker Watts, Incorporated
Ferris, Baker Watts, Incorporated (FBW) is a full-service
firm with more than 300 financial consultants, serving individual,
corporate and institutional clients nationally from 42 retail
branches located in the District of Columbia, Delaware, Maryland,
Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and
West Virginia. With one of the largest retail brokerage networks
in the Mid-Atlantic region, the firm maintains a focus on
building and preserving wealth for individual investors and
has US$19 billion in assets under administration. FBW was
formed in 1988 following the merger of Ferris and Co. and
Baker Watts (founded in 1900).
About RBC Wealth Management
RBC Wealth Management directly serves affluent and high net worth clients in Canada, the United States, Latin America, Europe and Asia. RBC Wealth Management also provides asset management and trust products and services directly and through RBC and third-party distributors to all client segments, and has C$500 billion of assets under administration, more than C$240 billion of assets under management and more than 4,000 financial consultants, advisors, private bankers and trust officers.
About RBC
Royal Bank of Canada (RY on TSX and NYSE) and its subsidiaries
operate under the master brand name of RBC. We are Canada's
largest bank as measured by assets and market capitalization
and one of North America's leading diversified financial services
companies. We provide personal and commercial banking, wealth
management services, insurance, corporate and investment banking
and transaction processing services on a global basis. Our
corporate support team enables business growth with expert
professional advice and state-of-the art processes and technology.
We employ approximately 75,000 full- and part-time employees
who serve more than 16 million personal, business, public
sector and institutional clients throughout offices in Canada,
the U.S. and 45 other countries around the world. For more
information, please visit www.rbc.com.
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Media Contacts:
RBC
John Bousquet,
RBC Wealth Management, (612) 371-2225
Beja Rodeck, RBC, (416) 974-5506
Ferris, Baker Watts, Incorporated
Robin Oegerle, FBW, (410) 659-4607
Investor Contacts:
Amy Cairncross, RBC, (416) 955-7809
For general investor relations information please visit:
www.rbc.com/investorrelations.
Safe Harbor Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements contained in this press
release may be deemed to be forward-looking statements under
certain securities laws, including the "safe harbor"
provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995 and in any applicable Canadian securities
legislation, and Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) and Ferris, Baker
Watts Incorporated. (FBW) intend that such forward-looking
statements be subject to the safe-harbor created thereby.
The words "may," "could," "should,"
"would," "outlook," "believe,"
"plan," "strategy," "opportunity,"
"anticipate," "estimate," "expect,"
"intend," and words and expressions of similar import
are intended to identify forward-looking statements.
By their very nature, forward-looking statements involve
numerous assumptions, and inherent risks and uncertainties,
both general and specific, and risks exist that predictions,
forecasts, projections and other forward-looking statements,
including statements about the expected expansion of investment
services to clients, will not be achieved. We caution readers
not to place undue reliance on these statements as a number
of important factors could cause our actual results to differ
materially from the beliefs, plans, objectives, expectations,
anticipations, estimates and intentions expressed in such
forward-looking statements. These factors include, but are
not limited to the possibility that the anticipated benefits
of the transaction are not realized as a result of such things
as the strength of the economy and competitive factors in
the areas where FBW does business; the impact of changes in
the laws and regulations regulating financial services and
enforcement thereof (including banking, insurance and securities);
judicial judgments and legal proceedings; RBC's ability to
integrate FBW with RBC successfully; reputational risks, and
other factors that may affect future results of RBC and FBW,
including changes in trade policies, timely development and
introduction of new products and services, changes in tax
laws, and technological and regulatory changes . We caution
that the foregoing list of important factors is not exhaustive.
Additional information about these and other factors can be
found in our Q2 2008 Report to Shareholders and in our 2007
Annual Report to Shareholders.
Except as required by law, Royal Bank of Canada and FBW assume
no obligation to update the forward-looking statements contained
in this press release.
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