Financial services and consumer banking firm Wells Fargo (WFC) re-branded most of the Wachovia international locations as part of the ongoing integration of the acquired financial firm. The re-branding greatly expands Wells Fargo’s overseas presence. The majority of former Wachovia international offices now use the Wells Fargo name and branding materials, although some locations will not convert until later this year. “We’re proud to be part of Wells Fargo’s continued commitment to building lasting banking relationships with leading financial institutions worldwide,” said Michael Heavener, executive vice president and group head of Wachovia’s Global Financial Institutions and Trade Services, in a press statement. The acquisition — completed in December 2008 — boosted Wells Fargo’s servicing of commercial and multifamily mortgages to $473.8bn as of Q4 2009. The acquisition also helped improve Wells’ consumer satisfaction in Q4 of 2009, when the bank scored the highest ranking among firms surveyed for a quarterly index. Wells Fargo improved 1% to a score of 73 out of 100 – highest among the large banks – a year after acquiring the Wachovia brand. Wachovia and Wells merged in December 2008 after rival suitor Citigroup (C) pulled out of acquisition talks following four days of discussion on splitting Wachovia’s assets. The result of the Wells/Wachovia merger included $1.4trn in assets and 11,000 stores nationwide servicing 48m banking households and 276,000 employees. Write to Diana Golobay. Disclosure: The author holds no relevant investment positions.