Wells Fargo Pushes Ahead With Takeover

Pushing ahead with its hostile takeover of First Interstate Bancorp., Wells Fargo & Co. said Thursday that the Federal Reserve has accepted its application to acquire the rival California bank.

First Interstate, meanwhile, said the Justice Department’s antitrust division is seeking information on the competitive impact a Wells Fargo takeover would have on banking services in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Sacramento and other places where the two banks’ operations overlap.

The agency examines bank mergers to determine whether the combined bank would have too much control over markets, leaving customers with too few choices.

In its application to the Fed’s San Francisco branch, Wells said it would sell branches in 14 markets to avoid antitrust concerns. The sales would take place within three months of the merger, said Wells.