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"JPMorgan Chase, Bank One Complete Merger"
"NEW YORK -- Bank One offices will begin converting to branches of JPMorgan Chase state by state beginning early next year. J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and Bank One Corp., Chicago, yesterday completed the merger of their holding companies. The financial services company, with assets of $1.1 trillion and operations in more than 50 countries, will operate under two distinct brands in the marketplace. JPMorgan will serve corporate and institutional clients as well as high-net-worth individuals across the globe. Chase will serve U.S. consumer and commercial banking customers with services encompassing retail banking, credit card, home and auto finance, small business, middle market and mid-corporate banking. The combined company will be known as J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. Preparations for migration to the new brand have begun, with changes planned to begin to appear first in credit cards, bank officials said. "Extensive, fact-based research indicated that the Chase brand is stronger in all parts of our consumer and commercial banking businesses," said William B. Harrison, chairman and chief executive officer of JPMorgan Chase. "With its 125-year heritage, the Chase brand has clearly built tremendous brand equity, specifically in key attributes such as trustworthiness, financial expertise and leadership. Additionally, customers and prospects alike view the Chase brand as more extendable to a broader array of products and services, such as insurance, retirement products and investments."Commenting on the selection of the Chase Brand, James Dimon, chairman and CEO of Bank One said, "Although we have built strong momentum for the Bank One brand, particularly during the past two years, the research was very clear that we will be better served by moving to the Chase brand. Ultimately, brands are built on performance. We are committed to delivering the best products and service to our customers to continue to build upon the great Chase name." With the completion of the merger, customers of both banks can withdraw cash, transfer funds, and checking account balances at 6,530 ATMs in 19 states without incurring a user's fee."Our customers get an immediate benefit from combining our companies into one of the world's most powerful financial services firms," said Charles Scharf, head of retail banking for Chase. "Banking has become more convenient."After the banks' branches are combined under a common computer system and Chase brand, customers will have full access to more than 2,300 branches in 17 states.The Chase-branded retail and commercial banking businesses will be headquartered in Chicago, the credit-card business in Delaware. The JPMorgan-branded businesses and the parent company, J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., will stay headquartered in New York. The Chase brand will serve more than 11 million retail banking customers, 850,000 small businesses and 31,000 commercial businesses through 2,300 branches in 17 states. It also will have issued 87 million credit cards.Shareholders approved the merger in May, and federal regulators gave their approval last month. Bank One stockholders will receive 1.32 shares of JPMorgan Chase common stock for each share of Bank One common stock. JPMorgan Chase stock will continue to trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol JPM; Bank One stock traded for the last time June 30.Visit JPMorgan Chase: www.jpmorganchase.com Visit Bank One: www.bankone.com"