NEW YORK — A battle broke out Friday for control of Wachovia as Wells Fargo agreed to pay $14.8 billion for the struggling bank, while Citigroup and federal regulators insisted that Citi’s earlier and lower-priced takeover offer go forward.
The surprise announcement that Wachovia Corp. agreed to be acquired by San Francisco- based Wells Fargo & Co. in the all-stock deal — without government assistance — upended what had appeared to be a carefully examined arrangement and caught regulators off guard.
Wells’ original offer totaled about $15.1 billion, but because the value of its shares closed down 60 cents Friday, the deal is now valued at about $14.8 billion.
Four days earlier, Citigroup Inc. agreed to pay $2.1 billion for Wachovia’s banking operations in a deal that would have the help of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. The head of the FDIC said the agency is standing behind the Citigroup agreement but that it is reviewing all proposals.
