www.wachoviabank.com

Wachovia Bank expected to expand to Long Island; how they will do it is a mystery

Late last year, WachoviaBank took out an ad in this paper claiming that the bank needed freestanding buildings, shopping- center locations and downtown corner locations to open financial centers on Long Island.
In the meantime, investment bankers think Wachovia, which doesn’t have a presence on Long Island yet, might enter the market in an altogether different way - by acquiring a local institution with deep roots across the Island.
The Charlotte, N.C.-based banking giant already has an enormous presence in New Jersey and a smaller one in New York City and Connecticut. It entered the Northeast when it acquired First Union in 2001.
Wachovia’s intentions to grow on Long Island are clear: the company has stepped up its branding efforts with ads on News 12 Long Island, the Cablevision-operated television news station.
So it seems like only a matter of time before the fourth-largest bank in the United States is here, though how they get here remains a mystery. Wachovia isn’t commenting on its expansion plans, only to say that it’s always exploring options. Access site now at www.wachoviabank.com