What is Bank of America

Bank of America, also known as BofA, is a U.S multinational financial services and investment bank company with headquarters in North Carolina and with branches all around the globe in major cities including London and Hong Kong. The Bank of America is a leading bank which offers basic checking accounts to both individuals and families. It has more than 4,600 retail locations and over $1.25 trillion in products under management. Bank of America operates throughout the country with its investment and loan products but has retail locations in 36 states including Washington, D.C. The number of retail locations in total is about 4,300.

Bank of America has a wide spectrum of offerings and services including personal finance products like checking accounts, savings accounts, home loans, auto loans, and a great variety. Client of Bank of America can take advantage of numerous investment opportunities through Merrill, which is an American investing and wealth management division and which Bank of America owns and operates. Through this service, clients can easily build their individual portfolio or have their entire investment account managed by professionals.

How it all started: History behind

Referring to history, Bank of America was created in 1998 after the purchase of BankAmerica by NationsBank. However, the history of Bank of America dates back to 1904 which was the year when the Italian American Amadeo Giannini founded Bank of Italy in San Francisco. Giannini initially created the bank in order to provide loans to immigrants, middle-class Americans or farmers who were denied services by big financial institutions of that time.

With deposits and rumours getting bigger and bigger the name of the bank changed to Bank of America, which according to Giannini it expressed the mission of his bank in a more accurate manner.

Following this change there was fast expansion, acquisitions, and branch openings, making Giannini’s small business look like a powerhouse. Bank of America is owned by many investors as it is publicly traded and used for currency exchanges such as the USD/GBP. One of the most popular investors in Bank of America is Berkshire Hathaway, which is an investment firm founded by Warren Buffett. This man owns more than 11% of the bank.

Customers’ Critics

During the 21st century there were different opinions regarding the Bank of America in relation to Merrill Lynch, NationsBank, and other financial institutions. As it seemed to outweigh its competitors, its rapid growth rate took its toll. While Bank of America struggled with public’s perception there was simultaneously a steady period of decline in 2009 regarding how people viewed local banks.

Irrespective of any barriers, Bank of America managed to maintain its status within the financial industry. Nowadays, Bank of America seems to have switched its retail network’s attention towards building and improving excellent online and mobile products. A big percentage of financial services and online tools supported the operations physically from Main Street to Dubai. As a result, Bank of America acquired a loyal customer base.

However, being a bank has both advantages and disadvantages. There were numerous ongoing bureaucracies, slow alterations times for mortgages, impersonal customer support, and additional fees which haunted Bank of America for multiple years.

New efforts in marketing

In the effort to reverse any negative views on Bank of America and local banks, new products, new services, and marketing efforts which targeted the public, were put into effect and were constantly being introduced. Taking one marketing campaign behind the “Keep the change” program as an example, customers were registered to have the “change” from each debit card transaction deposited into their savings account. This was very similar to a virtual piggy bank.

There was another major strategy during the 21st century which was about putting emphasis on easily accessible services. Bank of America has invested a great amount of money in online offerings and features, such as improvements of its website and mobile tools. Individual account management, mortgages, and tools to monitor and track total expenses are some of the services available from desktop computers, personal computers, tablets, and smartphones. Bank of America enables wiring money to accounts in the US and in other countries through online tools easily. Once clients enter the routing information and pass through some security checks, they are able to send money with a few simple clicks and taps.

Similar to other major national banks, Bank of America is able to be a one-stop shop for clients. Starting from checking and savings accounts to investment portfolios, mortgages and small business loans, customers of Bank of America can access almost any financial service they prefer from Bank of America. Nevertheless, many accounts or services they have with the bank, can all be accessed through an app, which only requires a Bank of America login ID.

Bank of America: Final thoughts

Those customers looking to establish a banking relationship outlined by convenience, one-stop shopping, online easy accessibility, and a wide range of products and services and tools, should consider large national banks. One of these is Bank of America, which is one of the largest banks worldwide.

Since October 2020, Bank of America has served about 66 million customers, including both big companies, individual consumers and small businesses. The bank operates around 4,300 retail financial centers, 17,000 ATMs, and online banking software with almost 39 million people actively using it, 31 million of whom access the software through the bank’s mobile app. The company is particularly good at serving small business and has 3 million small business owners as customers. Besides its U.S offices, BofA also operates in 35 countries abroad.

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