Forward-Looking Statements
This Annual Report and Form 10-K contains forward-looking statements. Statements that are not historical or current facts, including statements about beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties, and important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated, including the following, in addition to those contained in the Company's reports on file with the SEC: (i) general economic or industry conditions could be less favorable than expected, resulting in a deterioration in credit quality, a change in the allowance for credit losses, or a reduced demand for credit or fee-based products and services; (ii) the Company could encounter unforeseen complications in connection with the ongoing integration of the products, operations and information systems of Firstar with USBM that could adversely affect the Company's operations or customer relationships; (iii) changes in the domestic interest rate environment could reduce net interest income and could increase credit losses; (iv) the conditions of the securities markets could change, adversely affecting revenues from capital markets businesses, the value or credit quality of the Company's assets, or the availability and terms of funding necessary to meet the Company's liquidity needs; (v) changes in the extensive laws, regulations and policies governing financial services companies could alter the Company's business environment or affect operations; (vi) the potential need to adapt to industry changes in information technology systems, on which the Company is highly dependent, could present operational issues or require significant capital spending; (vii) competitive pressures could intensify and affect the Company's profitability, including as a result of continued industry consolidation, the increased availability of financial services from non-banks, technological developments, or bank regulatory reform; (viii) acquisitions may not produce revenue enhancements or cost savings at levels or within time frames originally anticipated, or may result in unforeseen integration difficulties; and (ix) capital investments in the Company's businesses may not produce expected growth in earnings anticipated at the time of the expenditure. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update them in light of new information or future events.

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