Seafirst Corporation was an American bank holding company based in Seattle , Washington . Its banking subsidiary, Seafirst Bank , was the largest bank in Washington, with 235 branches and 497 ATMs across the state.
83-521: Formed in 1929 via the merger of Seattle's three largest banks, Seafirst was acquired in 1983 by BankAmerica after posting huge losses from loans it purchased from the failed Penn Square Bank ; the Seafirst brand was retired in 1999 after NationsBank acquired BankAmerica the previous year and subsequently implemented the Bank of America brand nationwide. Seafirst Corporation was formed on November 11, 1929, from
166-422: A financial beachhead in the region. These mergers helped BankAmerica Corporation to once again become the largest U.S. bank holding company in terms of deposits, but the company fell to second place in 1997 behind North Carolina's fast-growing NationsBank Corporation , and to third in 1998 behind First Union Corp. On the capital markets side, the acquisition of Continental Illinois helped BankAmerica to build
249-428: A leveraged finance origination- and distribution business, which allowed the firm's existing broker-dealer, BancAmerica Securities (originally named BA Securities), to become a full-service franchise. In addition, in 1997, BankAmerica acquired Robertson Stephens , a San Francisco–based investment bank specializing in high technology for $ 540 million. Robertson Stephens was integrated into BancAmerica Securities, and
332-549: A number of industry groups in Europe, as well as cutting numerous banking and sales and trading positions in North America and Asia prior to its merger with Merrill Lynch. On October 3, 2008, Bank of America announced that John Thain would lead the combined Bank of America/ Merrill Lynch Global Corporate and Investment Banking enterprise. Thain was forced out by Bank of America Chairman Kenneth D. Lewis on January 22, 2009, because of
415-469: A potential merger but ultimately Fleet chose to merge with Shawmut in 1995. This merger made Fleet the largest bank in Boston and New England. In 1995, Bank of Boston announced a merger with BayBank, another local financial institution. Although still smaller than its failed takeover targets earlier in the decade, BayBank had a strong retail banking operation, with 205 branches and over a thousand ATMs . Baybanks
498-405: A separate company that eventually became First Interstate Bancorp , later acquired by Wells Fargo and Company in 1996. Only in the 1980s, with a change in federal banking legislation and regulation, could Bank of America again expand its domestic consumer banking activity outside California. New technologies also allowed the direct linking of credit cards with individual bank accounts. In 1958,
581-612: A series of acquisitions in the late 1980s. This represented, at the time, the largest bank acquisition in history. Federal regulators, however, forced the sale of roughly half of Security Pacific's Washington subsidiary, the former Rainier Bank , as the combination of Seafirst and Security Pacific Washington would have given BankAmerica too large a share of the market in that state. The Washington branches were divided and sold to West One Bancorp (now U.S. Bancorp ) and KeyBank . Later that year, BankAmerica expanded into Nevada by acquiring Valley Bank of Nevada. In 1994, BankAmerica acquired
664-630: A significant amount of work for Financial Sponsors, or private equity firms, often financing leveraged transactions. On the product side, the firm employed M&A senior bankers throughout the industry coverage groups. BAS also had a stand-alone Mergers & Acquisitions Group, consisting of bankers that transact M&A deals across all industries, as well as a Transaction Development Group, which aimed to identify and market transaction opportunities. The unit also had sizeable fixed income, currency and commodities divisions. During 2007–2008, BAS significantly downsized its international operations, eliminating
747-463: A stake in this lawsuit, including Chicago Clearing Corporation , hedge funds , and bank trusts, due to the belief that Bank of America stock was a sure investment. BankBoston#The Massachusetts Bank BankBoston was a bank based in Boston , Massachusetts , which was created by the 1996 merger of Bank of Boston and BayBank . One of its predecessor banks started in 1784, but the merged BankBoston
830-568: Is a replica of the 1909 Bank of Italy branch bank in History Park in San Jose, and the 1925 Bank of Italy Building is an important downtown landmark. Giannini sought to build a national bank, expanding into most of the western states as well as into the insurance industry , under the aegis of his holding company, Transamerica Corporation . In 1953 regulators succeeded in forcing the separation of Transamerica Corporation and Bank of America under
913-557: Is an American multinational investment bank and financial services holding company headquartered at the Bank of America Corporate Center in Charlotte, North Carolina , with investment banking and auxiliary headquarters in Manhattan . The bank was founded by the merger of NationsBank and Bank of America in 1998. It is the second-largest banking institution in the United States and
SECTION 10
#1733093496124996-819: Is considered within the " Bulge Bracket " as the third largest investment bank in the world , as of 2018 . Its wealth management side manages US$ 1.081 trillion in assets under management (AUM) as the second largest wealth manager in the world , after UBS . In commercial banking, Bank of America operates, but does not necessarily maintain, retail branches in all 50 states of the United States, Washington, D.C. , and over 40 other countries. Its commercial banking footprint encapsulates 46 million consumer and small business relationships at 4,600 banking centers and 16,000 automated teller machines (ATMs). The bank's large market share, business activities, and economic impact has led to numerous lawsuits and investigations regarding both mortgages and financial disclosures dating back to
1079-453: The 2008 financial crisis . Its corporate practices of servicing the middle class and wider banking community have yielded a substantial market share since the early 20th century. As of August 2018 , Bank of America has a $ 313.5 billion market capitalization , making it the 13th largest company in the world . As the sixth largest American public company, it garnered $ 102.98 billion in sales as of June 2018 . Bank of America
1162-804: The Bank of America Tower , a $ 1 billion, 58-story skyscraper, at Bryant Park in New York City that was completed in 2009. Prior to that, BAS in New York had offices in various locations due to the numerous mergers that had taken place over the previous decade, including space at 9 West 57th Street, 1 World Trade Center , 1633 Broadway, 40 East 52nd Street, 335 Madison Avenue, and 100 West 33rd Street. In 2001, McColl stepped down as CEO and named Ken Lewis as his successor. In 2004, Bank of America announced it would purchase Boston-based bank FleetBoston Financial for $ 47 billion in cash and stock. By merging with Bank of America, all of its banks and branches were given
1245-456: The Bank of Italy , in San Francisco. In 1922, Bank of America, Los Angeles was established with Giannini as a minority investor. The two banks merged in 1928 and consolidated with other bank holdings to create what would become the largest banking institution in the country. In 1918, another corporation, Bancitaly Corporation, was organized by A. P. Giannini, the largest stockholder of which
1328-573: The Clayton Antitrust Act . The passage of the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956 prohibited banks from owning non-banking subsidiaries such as insurance companies. Bank of America and Transamerica were separated, with the latter company continuing in the insurance sector. However, federal banking regulators prohibited Bank of America's interstate banking activity, and Bank of America's domestic banks outside California were forced into
1411-500: The Continental Illinois National Bank and Trust Co. of Chicago. At the time, no bank possessed the resources to bail out Continental, so the federal government operated the bank for nearly a decade. Illinois then regulated branch banking extremely heavily, so Bank of America Illinois was a single-unit bank until the 21st century. BankAmerica moved its national lending department to Chicago in an effort to establish
1494-667: The Justice Department announced a $ 335 million settlement with Bank of America over discriminatory lending practice at Countrywide Financial. Attorney General Eric Holder said a federal probe found discrimination against qualified African-American and Latino borrowers from 2004 to 2008. He said that minority borrowers who qualified for prime loans were steered into higher-interest-rate subprime loans . On September 14, 2008, Bank of America announced its intention to purchase Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. in an all-stock deal worth approximately $ 50 billion. Merrill Lynch
1577-915: The National Association of Securities Dealers . The use of " Banc " in the BAS's name was indicative of the fact that the company was not a bank , and its deposits and other holdings were not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation . The subsidiary was founded in 1998 following a strategy pioneered by Citigroup that combines corporate lending with investment banking advice and services. During its years of operation its strongest investment banking groups included high-yield debt underwriting and Leveraged Finance, in addition to industry coverage groups such as Healthcare, Consumer & Retail, Global Industries, Media & Telecom, Financial Institutions, Real Estate and Gaming. BAS also did
1660-737: The Wall Street Crash of 1929 , the First National Bank of Boston continued to grow in 1929, purchasing the Old Colony Trust Company. However, following the passage of the Glass–Steagall legislation in 1933, which prohibited commercial banks from engaging in investment banking and securities dealing, First National Bank of Boston was forced to divest its investment banking arm, the First Boston Corporation. In 1970
1743-508: The national bank system . After a year operating as The Massachusetts First National Bank of Boston, the combined firm dropped the usage of "Massachusetts" in the name. On December 24, 1927, Bank of Boston's headquarters in Buenos Aires , Argentina, were blown up by the Italian anarchist Severino Di Giovanni , in the frame of the international campaign supporting Sacco and Vanzetti . Despite
SECTION 20
#17330934961241826-532: The 1950s, passage of landmark federal banking legislation facilitated rapid growth, quickly establishing a prominent market share. After suffering a significant loss after the 1998 Russian bond default , BankAmerica, as it was then known, was acquired by the Charlotte-based NationsBank for US$ 62 billion. Following what was then the largest bank acquisition in history , the Bank of America Corporation
1909-685: The 1973 established BankBoston Panama provided custody services to non-resident investors in Panama. Boston-based Fleet Bank (originally Providence Bank, founded in Rhode Island in 1791) acquired BankBoston in 1999, on the heels of acquiring Shawmut Bank just a few years earlier. Fleet now dominated the New England market, yet saw the value in maintaining the old Bank of Boston brand in Latin America. The combination of Fleet and BankBoston resulted in what
1992-502: The 2007 race. The deal increased Bank of America's presence in Illinois , Michigan , and Indiana by 411 branches, 17,000 commercial bank clients, 1.4 million retail customers, and 1,500 ATMs. Bank of America became the largest bank in the Chicago market with 197 offices and 14% of the deposit share, surpassing JPMorgan Chase . LaSalle Bank and LaSalle Bank Midwest branches adopted
2075-481: The Bank of America logo. At the time of merger, FleetBoston was the seventh largest bank in United States with $ 197 billion in assets, over 20 million customers and revenue of $ 12 billion. Hundreds of FleetBoston workers lost their jobs or were demoted, according to The Boston Globe . On June 30, 2005, Bank of America announced it would purchase credit card giant MBNA for $ 35 billion in cash and stock. The Federal Reserve Board gave final approval to
2158-484: The Bank of America name on May 5, 2008. During the subprime mortgage crisis , the bank, under Ken Lewis , made two major acquisitions that would shape the future of the company for the next couple years coming out of the crisis. Specifically the bank was sued by many different parties and made to pay tens of billions of dollars. On August 23, 2007, the company announced a $ 2 billion repurchase agreement for Countrywide Financial . This purchase of preferred stock
2241-493: The Bank of Boston reorganized under a new holding company, First National Boston Corporation, and began a series of acquisitions of regional banks through the 1970s and 1980s. In 1978, the bank challenged a Massachusetts law limiting bank contributions to political issues. The U.S. Supreme Court sided with the bank that their First Amendment rights were being restricted, in First National Bank of Boston v. Bellotti . In 1982,
2324-643: The BankBoston name and trademarks were not part of the transaction, as part of the sale agreement, they cannot be used by Bank of America in Brazil, Chile or Uruguay following the transactions. Hence, the BankBoston name has disappeared from Brazil, Chile and Uruguay. The Itaú stock received by Bank of America in the transactions has allowed Bank of America's stake in Itaú to reach 11.51%. Banco de Boston de Brazil had been founded in 1947. On November 20, 2006, Bank of America announced
2407-560: The FDIC's decision to pay off only insured deposits rendered the participation assets valueless. The acquisition was completed in July 1983. In September 1983, the bank began to use the Seafirst Bank brand for advertising purposes while still keeping Seattle-First National Bank as the legal name for the bank. For the next quarter-century, Seafirst Bank maintained a high degree of autonomy and reigned as
2490-465: The New England region acquired over the course of more than two centuries. Among its notable predecessors were the Massachusetts Bank, the First National Bank of Boston, the Old Colony Trust Company and BayBank. Bank of Boston traced its roots back to The Massachusetts Bank founded in 1784. The Massachusetts Bank was the first federally chartered joint-stock owned bank in the United States and only
2573-478: The United States at that time. Giannini and Monnette headed the resulting company, serving as co-chairs. Giannini introduced branch banking shortly after 1909 legislation in California allowed for branch banking in the state, establishing the bank's first branch outside San Francisco in 1909 in San Jose. By 1929 the bank had 453 banking offices in California with aggregate resources of over US$ 1.4 billion. There
Seafirst Bank - Misplaced Pages Continue
2656-419: The acquisition did not go through, and later Bank of America were forced to request federal assistance, the management of Bank of America would be "gone". Other emails, read by Congressman Dennis Kucinich during the course of Lewis' testimony, state that Mr. Lewis had foreseen the outrage from his shareholders that the purchase of Merrill would cause, and asked government regulators to issue a letter stating that
2739-469: The acquisition of Merrill Lynch and that federal official pressured him to proceed with the deal or face losing his job and endangering the bank's relationship with federal regulators. Lewis's statement is backed up by internal emails subpoenaed by Republican lawmakers on the House Oversight Committee. In one of the emails, Richmond Federal Reserve President Jeffrey Lacker threatened that if
2822-543: The acquisition on December 5, 2008, and the deal closed January 1, 2009. Bank of America had planned to retain various members of the then Merrill Lynch's CEO, John Thain 's management team after the merger. However, after Thain was removed from his position, most of his allies left. The departure of Nelson Chai , who had been named Asia-Pacific president, left just one of Thain's hires in place: Tom Montag, head of sales and trading. The bank, in its January 16, 2009, earnings release, revealed massive losses at Merrill Lynch in
2905-496: The acquisition, which was completed in July 2008, giving the bank a substantial market share of the mortgage business, and access to Countrywide's resources for servicing mortgages. The acquisition was seen as preventing a potential bankruptcy for Countrywide. Countrywide, however, denied that it was close to bankruptcy. Countrywide provided mortgage servicing for nine million mortgages valued at $ 1.4 trillion as of December 31, 2007. This purchase made Bank of America Corporation
2988-514: The bank introduced the BankAmericard, which changed its name to Visa in 1977. A coalition of regional bankcard associations introduced Interbank in 1966 to compete with BankAmericard. Interbank became Master Charge in 1966 and then Mastercard in 1979. From February 1970 through September 1971, there were 66 attacks on Bank of America branches in California, including 53 bombings or fire-bombings, and 13 arson fires. There were "few injuries" and
3071-534: The bank renamed itself Bank of Boston. In 1985 Bank of Boston acquired Connecticut-based Colonial Bancorp and in 1987 acquired BankVermont Corporation. By the 1990s, Bank of Boston was looking to make another large acquisition, hoping to make itself too rich to be acquired by a much larger player. However, the bank lost the bidding in 1991 for the failed Bank of New England to Fleet Bank , and its attempted merger with Shawmut Bank collapsed in early 1992. In 1994, Bank of Boston entered into discussions with Fleet about
3154-562: The bank won a case before the US Supreme Court, United States v. Seattle-First Nat. Bank , by arguing that it did not have to pay a transfer tax when it converted from a state to a federally chartered bank. In 1970 it was using the name Firstbank. Seafirst Corporation was formed as a bank holding company for the Seattle-First National Bank on July 1, 1974. In April 1983, San Francisco-based BankAmerica Corporation announced
3237-407: The bank's name was changed from Baystate to BayBanks, Inc. BayBanks derived 80 percent of its revenues from its retail business, with 31% of households in eastern Massachusetts, and 25% across the entire state, having at least one BayBanks account. Following the merger, the combined Bank of Boston did regain the title as the largest bank in the city of Boston from its rival Fleet Bank although Fleet
3320-635: The brokerage firm Charles Schwab and Co. back to Mr. Schwab . It also sold Bank of America and Italy to Deutsche Bank . By the time of the 1987 stock-market crash , BankAmerica's share price had fallen to $ 8, but by 1992 it had rebounded mightily to become one of the biggest gainers of that half-decade. BankAmerica's next big acquisition came in 1992. The company acquired Security Pacific Corporation and its subsidiary Security Pacific National Bank in California and other banks in Arizona , Idaho , Oregon , and Washington , which Security Pacific had acquired in
3403-765: The colossal losses visited on B of A due to its acquisition of Merrill Lynch. With Thain's departure, Brian Moynihan became president of Global Banking and Global Wealth and Investment Management. After the merger was closed, the SEC Registration of Banc of America Securities was terminated in January 2011. BAS operated from a number of offices across the world, with major offices in New York, New York , Charlotte, North Carolina , Chicago, Illinois , San Francisco, California , Tokyo , Frankfurt , London , and Mumbai . The bulk of its investment banking operations eventually moved to
Seafirst Bank - Misplaced Pages Continue
3486-435: The combined subsidiary was renamed "BancAmerica Robertson Stephens". In 1997, BankAmerica lent investment management firm D. E. Shaw & Co. $ 1.4 billion to run various businesses for the bank. However, D.E. Shaw suffered significant loss after the 1998 Russia bond default . NationsBank of Charlotte acquired BankAmerica in 1998 in what was the largest bank acquisition in history at that time. While NationsBank
3569-501: The fourth quarter, which necessitated an infusion of money that had previously been negotiated with the government as part of the government-persuaded deal for the bank to acquire Merrill. Merrill recorded an operating loss of $ 21.5 billion in the quarter, mainly in its sales and trading operations, led by Tom Montag. The bank also disclosed it tried to abandon the deal in December after the extent of Merrill's trading losses surfaced, but
3652-419: The government had ordered him to complete the deal to acquire Merrill. Lewis, for his part, states he didn't recall requesting such a letter. The acquisition made Bank of America the number one underwriter of global high-yield debt , the third largest underwriter of global equity and the ninth largest adviser on global mergers and acquisitions. As the credit crisis eased, losses at Merrill Lynch subsided, and
3735-485: The largest financial services company in the world. Temasek Holdings , the largest shareholder of Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc., briefly became one of the largest shareholders of Bank of America, with a 3% stake. However, taking a loss Reuters estimated at $ 3 billion, the Singapore sovereign wealth fund sold its whole stake in Bank of America in the first quarter of 2009. Shareholders of both companies approved
3818-474: The largest U.S. domestic banks. On 17 December 2004, Bank of America sold its BankBoston (BKB) operations in Peru, Colombia, and Panama to the 1955 established Panamanian private equity bank Banco General . In 2006, Bank of America sold all BankBoston's Brazilian assets to Brazilian bank Banco Itaú , in exchange for Itaú shares. The BankBoston name and trademarks were not part of the transaction and, as part of
3901-557: The largest bank in Washington. On February 10, 1997, $ 4.4 million was stolen from the Seafirst branch of Lakewood by the Trenchcoat Robbers . Following the 1998 merger of BankAmerica Corp. and NationsBank Corp. into the modern Bank of America Corporation , Seafirst finally assumed the Bank of America brand on September 27, 1999. BankAmerica The Bank of America Corporation (often abbreviated BofA or BoA )
3984-535: The largest foreign bank in several major Latin American cities. In 1864, The Massachusetts Bank was renamed the Massachusetts National Bank. In 1903, The Massachusetts Bank merged with The First National Bank of Boston amidst a wave of consolidation in the banking industry at the start of the 20th century. First National had been founded in 1859 as Safety Fund Bank, changing its name in 1864 when it joined
4067-676: The leading mortgage originator and servicer in the U.S., controlling 20–25% of the home loan market. The deal was structured to merge Countrywide with the Red Oak Merger Corporation, which Bank of America created as an independent subsidiary. It has been suggested that the deal was structured this way to prevent a potential bankruptcy stemming from large losses in Countrywide hurting the parent organization by keeping Countrywide bankruptcy remote . Countrywide Financial has changed its name to Bank of America Home Loans . In December 2011,
4150-418: The many U.S. bank mergers that proliferated in the 1990s. In August 1998 BankBoston acquired Robertson Stephens & Co. from BankAmerica Corporation for approximately $ 800 million. The transaction represented the second largest acquisition in company history, after the purchase of BayBank. On 26 October 1999, Bank of New York gained BankBoston Panama as its subcustodian bank in Panama. Beginning in 1996,
4233-528: The merged company was and still is headquartered in Charlotte, and retains NationsBank's pre-1998 stock price history. All U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings before 1998 are listed under NationsBank, not Bank of America. NationsBank president, chairman, and CEO Hugh McColl , took on the same roles with the merged company. In 1998, Bank of America possessed combined assets of $ 570 billion, as well as 4,800 branches in 22 U.S. states. Despite
SECTION 50
#17330934961244316-547: The merger of Seattle 's three largest banks, the First National Bank Group (founded 1882), the Dexter Horton National Bank (founded 1870 by Dexter Horton ), and Seattle National Bank (founded 1889), the bank was originally named First Seattle Dexter Horton National Bank. In 1931, the bank changed its name to First National Bank of Seattle, and again in 1935 to Seattle-First National Bank. In 1944,
4399-452: The merger on December 15, 2005, and the merger closed on January 1, 2006. The acquisition of MBNA provided Bank of America a leading domestic and foreign credit card issuer. The combined Bank of America Card Services organization, including the former MBNA, had more than 40 million U.S. accounts and nearly $ 140 billion in outstanding balances. Under Bank of America, the operation was renamed FIA Card Services. Bank of America operated under
4482-641: The mid-Atlantic states. In 2000, FleetBoston acquired Summit Bancorp of Princeton , New Jersey . The acquisition of Summit, New Jersey's largest remaining bank at the time, vaulted FleetBoston into the #1 market-share position in the state of New Jersey and provided critical mass in the Philadelphia metro area. In 2004, FleetBoston in turn was purchased by Bank of America , which was looking to expand its East Coast presence. Bank of America chose to unload Bank of Boston's historic Latin American assets (still branded as BankBoston), in order to focus on becoming one of
4565-447: The name BankBoston in many other Latin American countries, including Brazil. In May 2006, Bank of America and Banco Itaú (Investimentos Itaú S.A.) entered into an acquisition agreement, through which Itaú agreed to acquire BankBoston's operations in Brazil, and was granted an exclusive right to purchase Bank of America's operations in Chile and Uruguay , in exchange for Itaú shares. The deal
4648-572: The oldest branch of the Bank of America franchise can be traced to 1784, when Massachusetts Bank was chartered, the first federally chartered joint-stock owned bank in the United States. Another branch of its history goes back to the U.S.-based Bank of Italy , founded by Amadeo Pietro Giannini in 1904, which provided various banking options to Italian immigrants who faced service discrimination . Headquartered in San Francisco, California , Giannini acquired Banca d'America e d'Italia , in 1922. In
4731-419: The pending acquisition of the ailing Seafirst Corporation for $ 400 million in cash and stock, when Seafirst was at risk of seizure by the federal government after becoming insolvent following the demise of Oklahoma City -based Penn Square Bank . Seafirst had acquired a significant share of Penn Square's energy loan debt by participating in loans originated by that bank. Penn Square Bank collapsed in 1982, and
4814-470: The problems on his predecessor, A. W. (Tom) Clausen , Clausen was appointed to replace Armacost. The losses resulted in a huge decline of BankAmerica stock, making it vulnerable to a hostile takeover . First Interstate Bancorp of Los Angeles (which had originated from banks once owned by BankAmerica), launched such a bid in the fall of 1986, although BankAmerica rebuffed it, mostly by selling operations. It sold its FinanceAmerica subsidiary to Chrysler and
4897-675: The property damage cost about $ 500,000, 80% of which was from the burning of the Isla Vista branch during a February 1970 riot. Following passage of the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956 by the U.S. Congress , BankAmerica Corporation was established for the purpose of owning and operating Bank of America and its subsidiaries. In 1983, Bank of America expanded outside California , through acquisition, orchestrated in part by Stephen McLin of Seafirst Corporation in Seattle , and its wholly owned banking subsidiary, Seattle-First National Bank. Seafirst
4980-621: The purchase of The United States Trust Company for $ 3.3 billion, from the Charles Schwab Corporation . US Trust had about $ 100 billion of assets under management and over 150 years of experience. The deal closed July 1, 2007. On September 14, 2007, Bank of America won approval from the Federal Reserve to acquire LaSalle Bank Corporation from ABN AMRO for $ 21 billion. With this purchase, Bank of America possessed $ 1.7 trillion in assets. A Dutch court blocked
5063-541: The sale agreement, cannot be used by Bank of America. In August 2006, Itaú purchased BankBoston assets in Chile and Uruguay. Operations in these countries continued to use the BankBoston brand until Banco Itau completed its takeover in Chile on February 27, 2007, and in Uruguay on March 23, 2007. In December 2006, Argentina's central bank approved Bank of America's sale of BankBoston Argentina to South Africa's Standard Bank . With
SECTION 60
#17330934961245146-469: The sale until it was later approved in July. The acquisition was completed on October 1, 2007. Many of LaSalle's branches and offices had already taken over smaller regional banks within the previous decade, such as Lansing and Detroit-based Michigan National Bank . The acquisition also included the Chicago Marathon event, which ABN AMRO acquired in 1996. Bank of America took over the event starting with
5229-401: The second bank to receive a charter in the United States, after the Bank of North America . The bank's charter was signed by John Hancock and among its early account holders were such notable figures as Paul Revere , Samuel Adams , John Hancock and Henry Knox . The bank's founders were largely made up of merchants who wanted to use a U.S., rather than British bank to send money abroad. It
5312-493: The second-largest bank in the world by market capitalization , both after JPMorgan Chase . Bank of America is one of the Big Four banking institutions of the United States. It serves about 10 percent of all American bank deposits, in direct competition with JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup , and Wells Fargo . Its primary financial services revolve around commercial banking , wealth management , and investment banking. Through mergers,
5395-512: The size of the two companies, federal regulators insisted only upon the divestiture of 13 branches in New Mexico , in towns that would be left with only a single bank following the combination. These branches were sold to BOK Financial Corporation , which operates them under the name "Bank of Albuquerque". The broker-dealer, NationsBanc Montgomery Securities, was named Banc of America Securities in 1998. Banc of America Securities LLC ( BAS ),
5478-521: The subsidiary generated $ 3.7 billion of Bank of America's $ 4.2 billion in profit by the end of quarter one in 2009, and over 25% in quarter 3 2009. On September 28, 2012, Bank of America settled the class-action lawsuit over the Merrill Lynch acquisition and will pay $ 2.43 billion. This was one of the first major securities class action lawsuits stemming from the financial crisis of 2007–2008 to settle. Many major financial institutions had
5561-402: Was Stockholders Auxiliary Corporation. This company acquired the stocks of various banks located in New York City and certain foreign countries. In 1928, Giannini merged his bank with Bank of America, Los Angeles , headed by Orra E. Monnette . Bank of Italy was renamed on November 3, 1930, to Bank of America National Trust and Savings Association , which was the only such designated bank in
5644-474: Was acquired by Bank of Italy of San Francisco, which took the Bank of America name two years later. The eastern portion of the Bank of America franchise can be traced to 1784, when Massachusetts Bank was chartered, the first federally chartered joint-stock owned bank in the United States and only the second bank to receive a charter in the United States. This bank became FleetBoston , with which Bank of America merged in 2004. In 1874, Commercial National Bank
5727-514: Was arranged to provide a return on investment of 7.25% per annum and provided the option to purchase common stock at a price of $ 18 per share. On January 11, 2008, Bank of America announced that it would buy Countrywide Financial for $ 4.1 billion. In March 2008, it was reported that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was investigating Countrywide for possible fraud relating to home loans and mortgages. This news did not hinder
5810-509: Was at risk of seizure by the federal government after becoming insolvent due to a series of bad loans to the oil industry . BankAmerica continued to operate its new subsidiary as Seafirst rather than Bank of America until the 1998 merger with NationsBank. BankAmerica experienced huge losses in 1986 and 1987 due to the placement of a series of bad loans in the Third World . The company fired its CEO, Sam Armacost , in 1986. Though Armacost blamed
5893-439: Was at the time within days of collapse, and the acquisition effectively saved Merrill from bankruptcy. Around the same time Bank of America was reportedly also in talks to purchase Lehman Brothers , however a lack of government guarantees caused the bank to abandon talks with Lehman. Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy the same day Bank of America announced its plans to acquire Merrill Lynch. This acquisition made Bank of America
5976-560: Was compelled to complete the merger by the U.S. government. The bank's stock price sank to $ 7.18, its lowest level in 17 years, after announcing earnings and the Merrill mishap. The market capitalization of Bank of America, including Merrill Lynch, was then $ 45 billion, less than the $ 50 billion it offered for Merrill just four months earlier, and down $ 108 billion from the merger announcement. Bank of America CEO Kenneth Lewis testified before Congress that he had some misgivings about
6059-579: Was first headquartered at the old Manufactory House , near Boston Common. The bank was the only bank in the city of Boston until the Union Bank (later the Bank of New England ) was founded in 1792. In 1786, the Massachusetts Bank financed the first U.S. trade mission to China, and in 1791, it financed the first voyage of an American ship to Argentina , establishing what would become a long-standing presence in Latin America . Bank of Boston would later become
6142-526: Was founded in 1928 when a Massachusetts asset manager with controlling stakes in nine banks reorganized itself as Old Colony Trust. After successfully weathering the Great Depression, Old Colony Trust changed its name to Baystate Corporation. This reflected the widening scope of operations and services the firm provided throughout Massachusetts. In the 1950s and 1960s, Baystate engaged in an aggressive acquisitions strategy and bought more than 40 banks. In 1976
6225-709: Was founded in Charlotte. That bank merged with American Trust Company in 1958 to form American Commercial Bank. Two years later it became North Carolina National Bank when it merged with Security National Bank of Greensboro. In 1991, it merged with C&S / Sovran Corporation of Atlanta and Norfolk to form NationsBank . The central portion of the franchise dates to 1910, when Commercial National Bank and Continental National Bank of Chicago merged in 1910 to form Continental & Commercial National Bank, which evolved into Continental Illinois National Bank & Trust . The history of Bank of America dates back to October 17, 1904, when Amadeo Pietro Giannini (1870–1949) founded
6308-423: Was founded. Through a series of mergers and acquisitions, it built upon its commercial banking business by establishing Merrill Lynch for wealth management and Bank of America Merrill Lynch for investment banking in 2008 and 2009, respectively, and since renamed BofA Securities. Both Bank of America and Merrill Lynch Wealth Management retain large market shares in their respective offerings. The investment bank
6391-493: Was ranked No. 25 on the 2020 Fortune 500 rankings of the largest US corporations by total revenue. Likewise, Bank of America was also ranked No. 6 on the 2023 Global 2000 rankings done by Forbes. Bank of America was named the "World's Best Bank" by the Euromoney Institutional Investor in its 2018 Awards for Excellence. Bank of America, Los Angeles was founded in California in 1923. In 1928, this entity
6474-405: Was short-lived, being acquired by FleetBoston Financial in 1999. In 2005, FleetBoston was purchased by, and merged into, Bank of America of Charlotte, North Carolina . After the sale of its Latin American branches in 2006, BankBoston currently exists solely as a subsidiary private bank owned by Bank of America. The history of BankBoston represents the combination of dozens of banks throughout
6557-574: Was signed in August 2006. Prior to the transaction, BankBoston's Brazilian operations included asset management, private banking, a credit card portfolio, and small, middle-market, and large corporate segments. It had 66 branches and 203,000 clients in Brazil. BankBoston in Chile had 44 branches and 58,000 clients and in Uruguay, it had 15 branches. In addition, there was a credit card company, OCA, in Uruguay, which had 23 branches. BankBoston N.A. in Uruguay, together with OCA, jointly served 372,000 clients. While
6640-490: Was still the larger bank overall. With the addition of BayBank's $ 11 billion of assets, the combined bank had total assets of over $ 62 billion at the end of 1996. The combined bank, rebranded BankBoston in 1996, was a major financial institution both domestically and internationally, due in part to the Latin American holdings of Bank of Boston, where the old name was still used. Nonetheless, it would soon be subsumed by one of
6723-534: Was the investment banking subsidiary of BoA from 1998 until BoA was merged with Merrill Lynch (2008). Headquartered in New York City, the company competed in both the domestic and international equity and investment banking markets. The company was a registered broker-dealer with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and was a member of the New York Stock Exchange and
6806-406: Was the eighth largest bank in the United States at the time, with assets of over $ 190 billion. Between the acquisitions by Fleet and BankBoston, the combined bank had consumed eight of the ten largest banks in New England at the start of the 1990s. The merged entity, FleetBoston Financial , adopted BankBoston's former Boston headquarters as its own. The bank had branches throughout New England and
6889-414: Was the nominal survivor, the merged bank took the better-known name of Bank of America. Hence, the holding company was renamed Bank of America Corporation, while NationsBank, N.A. merged with Bank of America NT&SA to form Bank of America, N.A. as the remaining legal bank entity. The combined bank operates under Federal Charter 13044, which was granted to Giannini's Bank of Italy on March 1, 1927. However,
#123876