Gaining Confidence
In October 2000, Barclays acquired Woolwich, a leading mortgage business in the United Kingdom, for £5.4 billion. The acquisition expanded Barclays's product and service portfolio and strengthened an area in which Barclays was weak-residential mortgages. As Barclays had primarily divested in the last 20 years, another purpose of this acquisition was just to show that Barclays could grow, not just divest. The Woolwich CEO, John Stewart, moved into Barclays to head Retail.