What company resulted from NationsBank’s 1998 merger with Bank of America?

Bank of America resulted from NationsBank’s 1998 merger with Bank of America.

NationsBank announced the acquisition of Bank of America in April 1998, and the transaction was completed in September that year. Although NationsBank was the legal acquirer, it adopted the better-known Bank of America name and brand, creating one of the largest banking companies in the United States.

The original Bank of America had been founded in California in 1904 as the Bank of Italy by Amadeo Giannini. NationsBank, meanwhile, traced its history to North Carolina National Bank and had expanded through a series of acquisitions.

The deal is often described as a merger because the resulting institution used Bank of America’s identity. It is separate from Bank of America’s later 2008 acquisition of Merrill Lynch, which added major investment-banking and wealth-management operations.