Bank of America

The new Bank of America came into being on 1 October 1998 following the merger between the former Bank of America and NationsBank.

The story of Bank of America began in 1904 when A.P. Giannini, the eldest son of Italian immigrant parents, founded what was then called Bank of Italy in San Francisco with capital of $150,000. Concerned with what he saw as the failure of banks to meet community needs, Giannini’s bank — which changed its name to Bank of America in 1930 — set out to offer wage earners and small businesses banking services which had been traditionally reserved for the wealthy and large companies. Today, Bank of America is one of the largest financial institutions in the world with a presence in some 40 countries providing commercial and banking services to multinational, regional and major indigenous corporations and financial institutions and governments world-wide.

Over the last decade several major mergers have contributed substantially to that growth. The merger with Security Pacific in 1992 made BankAmerica Corporation the second largest U.S. bank holding company based on total assets. In January 1994, the acquisition of the Chicago-based Continental Bank further enhanced Bank of America’s wholesale presence in the U.S. and its global emerging markets businesses. In 1998, the merger of BankAmerica and NationsBanc created a giant financial institution with its corporate and retailing banking headquarters in Charlotte, North Carolina, and its global corporate and investment banking activities managed from San Francisco.

Prior to the merger, NationsBank Corporation was the third largest US bank with full-service operations in 16 US states and the District of Columbia. NationsBank started out as the North Carolina National Bank but grew rapidly through acquisition into a strong retail and corporate banking business throughout the southern and south-eastern states. NationsBank itself was formed as a result of a number of mergers, the most notable and recent of which was with Barnett Banks of Florida. Based in Charlotte, North Carolina, this has now become the headquarters of the new Bank of America.

Bank of America Today

Bank of America is the largest bank in the United States. With full-service operations in 21 states and the District of Columbia, it provides financial products and services to almost 40 percent of the households in its retail footprint and two million businesses. The bank also supports business transactions in 190 countries. Its stock (ticker: BAC) is listed on the New York, Pacific and London stock exchanges. Certain shares also are listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. In 2000, the bank posted operating earnings of $7.86billion. Revenue growth in 2000 was driven by the build-out of the investment banking and trading platforms. Global Capital Raising reported 38 percent revenue growth due to higher investment banking fees and trading revenue and it is this growth that has resulted in a steady increase in market shares and rankings. Bank of America ranked in the top ten in all key product areas.

The chairman and chief executive officer is Hugh McColl. On his retirement on 25 April 2001 he will be succeeded by Kenneth D. Lewis, currently president and chief operating officer of Bank of America.