UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Washington, D.C. 20549 FORM 10-K X ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2007 OR TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 For the transition period from to COMMISSION FILE NUMBER: 1-14659 WILMINGTON TRUST CORPORATION (Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter) DELAWARE 51-0328154 (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization) (Internal Revenue Service Employer Identification Number) 1100 North Market Street Wilmington, Delaware 19890 19890 (Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code) Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (302) 651-1000 Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act: Title of Each Class Name of Each Exchange on Which Registered Common Stock, $1.00 Par Value New York Stock Exchange Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None. Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes X No Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Act. Yes No X Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such report(s)), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes X No Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K (§ 229.405 of this chapter) is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of registrant’s knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K. Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer” and “smaller reporting company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check One): Large accelerated filer X Accelerated filer Non-accelerated filer Smaller reporting company (Do not check if a smaller reporting company) Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). Yes No X Aggregate market value of the voting and non-voting common equity held by non-affiliates* computed by reference to the price at which the common equity was last sold, or the average bid and asked price of such common equity, as of June 30, 2007, the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter. $2,765,358,799 *For purposes of this calculation, Wilmington Trust’s subsidiaries and its directors and executive officers are deemed to be affiliates. Number of shares outstanding of each of the registrant’s classes of common stock at January 31, 2008: 67,706,041 Documents Incorporated by Reference: Portions of the Proxy Statement for our Annual Shareholders Meeting (Proxy Statement) to be held April 17, 2008, are incorporated by reference in Part III, and portions of our Annual Report to Shareholders for 2007 (Annual Report) are incorporated by reference in Parts I, II, and IV. TABLE OF CONTENTS Pages PART I Item 1 Business 1 Item 1A Risk Factors 3 Item 1B Unresolved Staff Comments 4 Item 2 Properties 4 Item 3 Legal Proceedings 5 Item 4 Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders 5 PART II Item 5 Market for Registrant’s Common Stock, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities 5 Item 6 Selected Financial Data 6 Item 7 Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations 6 Item 7A Qualitative and Quantitative Disclosure About Market Risk 6 Item 8 Financial Statements and Supplemental Data 6 Item 9 Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure 7 Item 9A Controls and Procedures 7 Item 9B Other Information 7 PART III Item 10 Directors, Executive Officers, and Corporate Governance 7 Item 11 Executive Compensation 7 Item 12 Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters 7 Item 13 Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence 7 Item 14 Principal Accountant Fees and Services 7 PART IV Item 15 Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules 7 PART I ITEM 1. BUSINESS DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS Wilmington Trust Corporation is (we are) a Delaware corporation and financial holding company under the Bank Holding Company Act. We provide a full range of banking and other financial services through our banking and other subsidiaries. Our principal subsidiary is Wilmington Trust Company (WTC), a Delaware-chartered bank and trust company founded in 1903. We also own two other depository institutions: Wilmington Trust of Pennsylvania (WTPA), a Pennsylvania-chartered bank and trust company, and Wilmington Trust FSB (WTFSB), a federally-chartered savings bank. Organizationally, we have four business segments: Regional Banking, Corporate Client Services (CCS), Wealth Advisory Services (WAS), and Affiliate Money Managers. More information about our business is in this report’s Management Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations (MD&A) and in Notes 1 and 23 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements, and is incorporated by reference herein. STAFF MEMBERS At year-end 2007, we had 2,672 full-time-equivalent staff members. We provide a variety of benefit programs for these staff members, including pension, incentive compensation, thrift savings, stock purchase, and group life, health, and accident plans. We consider our relationships with these staff members to be good, and we believe our ability to attract and retain high-quality staff members substantiates this. STATISTICAL INFORMATION The following information, as required by SEC Industry Guide 3, is contained in the MD&A and the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements, and is incorporated from the following pages of the Annual Report by reference herein. Statistical Information Section Page Interest changes due to volume and rate MD&A interest rate risk discussion 53 Maturity distribution of investment securities Note 6 87 Period-end loan balances by loan category MD&A Regional Banking discussion 16 Loan loss reserve allocation for the last five years MD&A credit risk discussion 50 Loan maturities and interest rate sensitivity in the commercial and real estate/construction loan portfolios MD&A Regional Banking discussion 19 Risk elements in the loan portfolio MD&A credit risk discussion 45 Analysis of the loan loss provision and reserve and charge offs MD&A credit risk discussion 46 Maturity of time deposits ≥ $100,000 Note 11 92 Summary of short-term borrowings Note 12 92 Funding sources by deposit type MD&A liquidity discussion 38 Returns on average assets and average equity, dividend payout ratio, and average equity to average assets MD&A capital resources discussion 34 Average balance sheets and analysis of net interest earnings for the last five years 66 SUPERVISION AND REGULATION As a publicly traded company that issues stock, we are subject to the rules and regulations of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Our stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange, and we are subject to that exchange’s rules and regulations. Our Board of Directors has implemented a system of strong corporate governance practices. More information about this is available on our Web site at www.wilmingtontrust.com. We are a bank holding company, a thrift holding company, and a financial holding company under the Bank Holding Company Act. We and WTC are regulated by the Delaware Department of Banking and the Federal Reserve Board (FRB). WTPA is regulated by the Pennsylvania Department of Banking and the FRB. WTFSB is regulated by the Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS). WTC, WTPA, and WTFSB (collectively, the banks) are subject to the rules and regulations of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). In addition, some of our subsidiaries are regulated by other federal and state authorities as well as by regulatory authorities of other countries in which we conduct business. The FDIC insures deposits in the banks up to applicable limits. Currently, only WTFSB is required to pay premiums for FDIC insurance coverage. Safety and soundness. The FRB requires us to operate in a safe and sound manner. If the FRB determines there is a serious risk to the financial safety and soundness of a subsidiary bank, it can require us to terminate the activity presenting the risk or terminate our control of the subsidiary. Federal regulations establish dollar amount limits and collateral requirements for assets the banks purchase from non- bank affiliates. For these purposes, we and most of the companies we control are considered affiliates of the banks. In addition, the Federal Reserve Act and the FRB impose dollar amount, credit quality, and other limitations on loans the banks make to directors, officers, principal shareholders, and their related interests. Capital requirements and dividend limitations. To assess the capital adequacy of bank holding companies and their bank subsidiaries, the FRB and other federal banking agencies have adopted risk-weighted capital standards. As of December 31, 2007, we and the banks were well capitalized, with capital levels that exceeded the minimum thresholds. For more information about this, read Note 16 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements. Dividends paid by the banks to us, and by us to shareholders, are subject to FRB, OTS, Delaware, and other legal and regulatory restrictions.