Wilmington Trust Asset Management

M&T Bank Corporation acquired Wilmington Trust in 2011 following Wilmington Trust's financial distress during the real estate crisis. Despite the acquisition, Wilmington Trust continues to operate under its own brand, maintaining its charter, trust powers, and headquarters in Wilmington, Delaware. M&T provides capital support and broader distribution but the wealth management and institutional trust business functions as a distinct division.

Wilmington Trust operates primarily as a fiduciary advisor rather than a proprietary asset manager. Its internal investment research team evaluates and selects external third-party managers across asset classes, constructing multi-manager portfolios for clients. The firm does not market its own in-house mutual funds or hedge fund products at scale, which distinguishes its open-architecture posture from many bank-affiliated wealth managers.

No. While chartered explicitly to serve the du Pont family's wealth in 1903, Wilmington Trust evolved into a publicly offered trust company decades ago. Today it serves thousands of corporate trust mandates and high-net-worth families. The du Pont family retains no controlling ownership—the firm has been a subsidiary of M&T Bank since 2011—and it competes openly for external client relationships.

Delaware is the dominant US jurisdiction for directed and dynasty trusts due to its favorable tax laws, lack of rule against perpetuities, and the specialized Delaware Court of Chancery. Wilmington Trust, as one of Delaware's largest trust companies, can serve as an institutional trustee for out-of-state families seeking Delaware-situs trusts. This allows family offices to access asset protection, governance, and perpetual trust structures that are unavailable under the laws of most other US states.

Wilmington Trust's private equity exposure for wealth management clients is typically accessed through fund commitments to external general partners, advised by the firm's manager research team. The firm itself does not sponsor private equity funds. Through its parent M&T Bank, there may be separate institutional credit and capital markets activities, but the wealth management division acts as an allocator, not a direct investor in operating companies.