State St. to Buy Fleet Corporate Trust Unit

State Street Boston Corp. has agreed to buy the corporate trust business of Fleet Financial Group.

The deal, the terms of which were undisclosed, would boost State Street's corporate trust business by 30% to $418 billion. Corporate trust includes trustee, paying agent, transfer agent, and escrow agent services.

"We saw an opportunity to bring in a strong national customer base to our existing book," said George Bird, a State Street executive vice president.

Chase Manhattan Corp. and Bank of New York Co. had also been interested in the $96 billion Fleet portfolio, analysts said.

"It's a good win for State Street," said Sally Pope Davis, an analyst at Goldman Sachs & Co.

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