Prior to its acquisition, Dean Witter Reynolds was one of the largest retail firms in the securities industry, serving over 3.2 million clients primarily in the U.S. It offered debt and equity underwriting, brokerage services, mutual funds, and other investment products. The company's asset management arm, Dean Witter InterCapital, was one of the largest asset management operations in the U.S. In 1997, Dean Witter merged with Morgan Stanley to form Morgan Stanley Dean Witter. Later, the retail operations were transferred to Morgan Stanley Smith Barney.