Wells Fargo Introduces the Family Wealth Group

Business Wire, March 31, 2008

SAN FRANCISCO -- Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. today introduced the Family Wealth Group, a comprehensive multi-family office serving ultra-wealthy families who manage their wealth across generations. The Family Wealth Group, part of Wells Fargo Private Bank, combines superior investment management and risk management capabilities with a broad view of wealth management that includes family enterprise governance and legacy planning.

Families with $50 million or more in assets are the fastest growing wealth segment today. Wells Fargo has developed capabilities for managing the current and future impacts of wealth on all aspects of family life, in response to the changing needs of these families.

"Our clients are families who are concerned not only with managing their wealth, but also with ensuring responsible stewardship of their wealth today and for generations to come," said Michael Cole, executive vice president and national director of the Family Wealth Group.

Wells Fargo, which has been helping generations of families manage their wealth since 1852, today has a significant presence in the ultra-high-net-worth market segment. The Family Wealth Group currently has $7 billion under management. The Family Wealth Group generally serves families with at least $50 million in net worth.

"The Family Wealth Group is an important part of Wells Fargo's ability to provide financial services across the full spectrum of wealth," said Jay Welker, executive vice president and head of Wells Fargo Wealth Management Group. "This segment is an important one in the growth of The Private Bank."

Wealth, Worth and Fulfillment(SM) Planning

"Traditional financial firms and family offices tend to focus only on the wealth," Cole said. "We address all the important issues that come along with wealth, including its impact on the lives of our clients and their families. Our goal is to assist families in aligning their wealth and their values."

Wells Fargo Family Wealth Group has developed a unique set of capabilities to address these broader needs, including:

* The Wealth Planning Center, a multi-disciplinary think tank that researches issues affecting ultra-high-net-worth families.

* Proprietary analytical tools such as Family Wealth and Enterprise Genograms, which map wealth dynamics, organizational architecture and financial structure across the family tree. By providing clarity, this tool helps clients build a bridge between the past and the family's vision for its future.

* Family Wealth Retreats focused on family history, wealth education and inter-generational wealth planning. They include technical sessions such as risk management; qualitative sessions on raising children of wealth and charitable giving strategies; and family communication exercises.

* On-staff Family Wealth Consultants, many with advanced degrees and professional designations, who help families navigate the complexities brought on by wealth; for example, managing multi-level relationships in a family where father and son may also be employer and employee, and trust beneficiary and trustee.

* A comprehensive risk management process evaluating categories of risk that specifically impact families of wealth, including managing interest rate risk, business ownership risk and financial leverage and oversight risk.

Institutional-Grade Investment and Banking Process Designed Around Family Needs

Ultra-high-net-worth families have unique investment, leverage and liquidity needs that blur the line between individuals and institutions, and are best served by a diversified financial institution designed around the needs of both. Like institutions, these families have a much greater ability and desire to work with alternative investments, can afford less liquidity, and can buy institutional-sized allocations of securities. However, because they are individuals, they also pay personal income taxes, must plan for asset transfer upon death, and face a different set of risk factors.

Among the Family Wealth Group's unique combination of capabilities:

* The Family Wealth Group has dedicated analysts covering hedge funds, private capital and other alternative investments specifically for this clientele.

* The Family Wealth Group employs Risk Budgeting, a multi-factor investment risk assessment process that goes beyond the commonly used Value at Risk process to evaluate the varied sources of risk to capital.

* The Family Wealth Group offers robust client reporting tools allowing clients a comprehensive and simplified view of their family wealth across providers.

* The Family Wealth Group has access to Wells Fargo and its broad array of investment capabilities and products including traditional investment management, real estate, alternative energy, structured investments, foreign exchange, and oil, gas and mineral rights.

* As part of the broader Wells Fargo Bank N.A. and Wells Fargo Private Bank, the Family Wealth Group is able to deliver specialized debt and liability management, cash management and customized financing solutions.