Q&A Asiff Hirji last month was promoted to chief operating officer of Ameritrade Holding Corp. after serving three years as CIO at the online brokerage.

Rejecting a takeover offer from E-Trade Financial Corp., Ameritrade Holding Corp. on Wednesday said it will instead acquire rival online brokerage TD Waterhouse from Toronto-Dominion Bank. The acquisition has been rumored for weeks.

Only a few hours after online brokerage Ameritrade Holding Corp. affirmed that it was not for sale, E-Trade Financial Corp. disclosed it had made an unsuccessful bid for its rival.

E-Trade Financial Corp. confirmed Thursday it had made an unsuccessful stock and cash bid for rival online brokerage Ameritrade Holding Corp. The announcement came only hours after Ameritrade said its board had decided the brokerage was not for sale.

Online brokerage Ameritrade Holding Corp. said Thursday that it is not for sale, sending its shares down nearly 5 percent in early trading. The announcement followed recent published reports that it had received an unsolicited bid from rival E-Trade Financial Corp.