On February 5, 1997 the company announced a merger with Dean Witter Discover and Company, the spun-off financial services business of Sears Roebuck. The merged company was briefly known as "Morgan Stanley Dean Witter Discover & Co. " until 1998 and then "Morgan Stanley Dean Witter & Co." until late 2001.
Philip J. Purcell, who had headed Dean Witter Discover, has been chairman and chief executive officer since the merger.