

Its earliest and most significant tasks included transporting gold from the Philadelphia Mint and "express" mail delivery that was faster and less expensive than U.S. Fargo, who had helped found American Express along with John Butterfield, formed Wells Fargo & Company in 1852 to provide "express" and banking services to California, which was growing rapidly due to the California Gold Rush.


At the same time, its banking subsidiary merged with Wells Fargo's Sioux Falls-based banking subsidiary. While Norwest was the nominal survivor, the merged company took the better-known Wells Fargo name and moved to Wells Fargo's hub in San Francisco. Wells Fargo, in its present form, is a result of a merger between the original Wells Fargo & Company and Minneapolis-based Norwest Corporation in 1998. It is one of the most valuable bank brands. Along with JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and Citigroup, Wells Fargo is one of the " Big Four Banks" of the United States. It is the fourth largest bank in the United States by total assets and is one of the largest as ranked by bank deposits and market capitalization. The firm's primary subsidiary is Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., a national bank chartered in Wilmington, Delaware, which designates its main office in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. It is considered a systemically important financial institution by the Financial Stability Board. The company has operations in 35 countries with over 70 million customers globally.

Wells Fargo & Company is an American multinational financial services company with corporate headquarters in San Francisco, California, operational headquarters in Manhattan, and managerial offices throughout the United States and internationally. $2 stamp and 10 cents stamped envelope with Pony Express cancellation, carried from San Francisco to New York City in 12 days, during June 1861.
