Bank of America

Bank of America

One of the largest banks in the United States. It traces its origins to the Bank of Italy in the early 20th century, which served immigrants in San Francisco. It grew to serve all of California and, through a number of acquisitions, spread throughout the United States. In the 1990s, while named BankAmerica, it lent a hedge fund more than $1 billion; when this hedge fund lost out in the Russian financial crisis, the bank was bought by NationsBank, which took the name Bank of America. It bought MBNA, at the time the world's largest credit card issuer, in 2005. In 2008, it acquired Merrill Lynch, which was near bankruptcy, after pressure from U.S. authorities. In 2008 and 2009 it received a federal bailout worth more than $150 billion in cash and guarantees.