CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- First Union Corp. shareholders voted on July 31 in favor of a proposed merger with Wachovia Corp. that would create the nation's fourth-largest bank, according to an Associated Press report.
Ninety-five percent of the shareholders who voted agreed to the $14.5 billion deal, First Union said.
However, the real test of whether the merger will proceed comes on Aug. 3, when Wachovia shareholders decide whether to approve the First Union bid or vote no -- effectively throwing their support behind a competing, unsolicited $15.4 billion bid by SunTrust Bank Inc.
First Union and SunTrust, both based in Atlanta, have waged a fierce proxy battle this summer for Wachovia, whose board of directors endorses the First Union merger.
The First Union-Wachovia deal gained momentum with recent endorsements by two shareholder advisory firms, and the refusal of a North Carolina judge to block the merger.
