LendingTree and Wachovia’s GreenLink Form Settlement Services Joint Venture
CHARLOTTE, NC and JACKSONVILLE, FL, July 27, 2004 – LendingTree, Inc.® and GreenLink LLC today announced a joint venture to offer real estate settlement services. The new vendor management company, to be called LendingTree Settlement Services and based in Jacksonville, Florida, will offer appraisal, flood insurance, title and closing services. LendingTree is the majority owner. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
LendingTree is an online exchange that connects consumers with lenders and REALTORS®. Formed in 2000, GreenLink is Wachovia’s settlement services subsidiary.
Said David Anderson, general manager of LendingTree Settlement Services, “This is an important step forward in LendingTree’s strategy to simplify and streamline the settlement services process for both our lender partners and our customers. Given its nationwide network of thousands of vendors, strong technology platform and unmatched management expertise, GreenLink is the ideal partner.”
Patrick D. McElhaney, chief executive officer of GreenLink, added “We are delighted to have this opportunity to partner with the premier brand name in the Internet lending space. GreenLink’s proven expertise in building and operating a successful settlement services company coupled with LendingTree’s distribution and customer management expertise is a winning combination. We look forward to an exciting and successful future.”
About GreenLink and Wachovia
GreenLink LLC supplies a range of national real estate settlement services such as appraisals, title searches, title insurance, closings and flood certifications to Wachovia’s consumer lending and servicing units. GreenLink currently processes more than 1,000,000 transactions a year.
Wachovia Corporation (NYSE:WB) is one of the largest providers of financial services to retail, brokerage and corporate customers throughout the East Coast and the nation, with assets of $411 billion, market capitalization of $61.7 billion and stockholders’ equity of $33.3 billion at March 31, 2004. Its four core businesses, the General Bank, Capital Management, Wealth Management, and the Corporate and Investment Bank, serve 12 million client relationships (including households and businesses), primarily in 11 East Coast states and Washington, D.C. Online banking and brokerage products and services also are available through Wachovia.com.
About LendingTree, Inc.
Founded in 1996, LendingTree is an online exchange that connects consumers with Lenders and REALTORS®. LendingTree has facilitated nearly $81.7 billion in closed loan and real estate transactions since its inception, serving more than 12.8 million consumers. Loans available via the LendingTree exchange include home mortgage and refinance, home equity, automobile, personal, debt consolidation, and credit cards. The LendingTree Realty Services offering enables consumers in the market to buy or sell a home to choose from a nationwide network of REALTORS who can help them from start to finish. LendingTree is an operating business of IAC/InterActiveCorp (NASDAQ: IACI). LendingTree also owns and operates RealEstate.com, Domania, and GetSmart.com. REALTOR® — A registered collective membership mark that identifies a real estate professional who is a member of the National Association of REALTORS® and subscribes to its strict Code of Ethics.