Wachovia ends wholesale mortgages

Wachovia has been hit by problems in the US housing market

Wachovia, the fourth-largest US bank, has said it is to stop offering mortgages via brokers from 25 July.

It follows others, such as Bank of America, who left the wholesale mortgage business earlier this year, and National City.

Wachovia said the firm "recognised some opportunities to re-position our business" in current market conditions.

Earlier this month Wachovia hired Robert Steel as its new boss after the ousting of predecessor Ken Thompson.

"We believe it is important to focus on serving the needs of customers who have relationships with the bank, and who are located in geographies where Wachovia franchises are located," the bank said in a statement.

Wachovia bought mortgage lender Golden West Financial in 2006 for roughly $25bn at the height of the housing boom.

It left Wachovia with a deteriorating $120bn portfolio of Pick-A-Payment loans - Golden West's speciality - which let borrowers miss some payments.

Wachovia said earlier this year it had lost $708m in the first three months of 2008, and had to raise an extra $8bn of funds.