News Details

WATERBURY, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 31, 2000--Webster Financial Corporation (Nasdaq: WBST), holding company for Webster Bank, announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement to purchase a 65 percent interest in Duff & Phelps, LLC, an independent privately owned financial advisor and investment bank headquartered in Chicago, with offices in New York, Los Angeles and Raleigh-Durham. Terms were not disclosed.

Duff & Phelps provides expertise in middle-market mergers and acquisitions, private placements, fairness opinions, valuations, ESOP and ERISA advisory services, and special financial advisory services. The firm employs a staff of approximately 90 and will continue to operate under the Duff & Phelps name.

"We are pleased to announce this strategic partnership. Duff & Phelps is an accomplished provider of middle-market merger and acquisition advisory services, has an outstanding record in the private placement of debt and equity, and is highly respected for its valuations and fairness opinions," said James C. Smith, Webster chairman and chief executive officer. "We expect that the compatibility of our business plans will contribute to revenue growth."

The Duff & Phelps transaction is expected to be marginally accretive to Webster's 2001 GAAP earnings per share, adding in excess of $20 million of fee-based revenue. The transaction is expected to close before the end of the year.

"This transaction further accelerates progress toward our strategic objective of broadening our commercial bank product offerings and increasing revenue from fee-based services," said William T. Bromage, Webster president. "For Webster's regional business customers, we now add Duff and Phelps' recognized expertise as a financial advisor to the list of financial services we provide."

Founded in 1932, Duff & Phelps built its business as financial advisor to some of America's most successful corporations. Over the years, Duff & Phelps branched into credit rating and investment management subsidiaries. These businesses, Duff & Phelps Credit Rating Co., which was acquired by Fitch IBCA, and Phoenix Investment Partners, are now separate companies from Duff & Phelps LLC.

"Duff and Phelps and Webster share a keen focus on providing the financial services that middle-market business customers require," said Duff & Phelps president Chet Gougis. "This strategic partnership will allow us to leverage skills and relationships, while providing us greater growth opportunities going forward."

Connecticut-based Webster Bank provides business and consumer banking, mortgage, insurance, trust and investment services through more than 110 banking offices, 200 ATMs and the Internet (www.websterbank.com). Webster's online mortgage subsidiary at www.nowlending.com on the Worldwide Web originates low-cost mortgages across the United States.

For more information on Webster, including past press releases and the latest Annual Report, visit the Webster Bank website at www.websterbank.com.

Statements in this press release regarding Webster Financial Corporation's business that are not historical facts are "forward looking statements" that involve risks and uncertainties. For a discussion of such risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statement, see "Forward Looking Statements" in the Company's Annual Report for the most recently ended fiscal year.

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