Which bank received a $5 billion preferred-stock investment from Berkshire Hathaway in 2011?

Bank of America received a $5 billion preferred-stock investment from Berkshire Hathaway in 2011.

The deal was announced on August 25, 2011, as the U.S. banking sector was still recovering from the financial crisis. Berkshire bought preferred shares paying a 6% annual dividend, worth about $300 million per year, and also received warrants to purchase 700 million Bank of America common shares at $7.14 each.

Those warrants became especially valuable as Bank of America’s share price recovered. Berkshire exercised them in 2017, turning the investment into a multibillion-dollar gain. The transaction is often confused with Berkshire’s 2008 investment in Goldman Sachs, which also involved $5 billion in preferred stock but was a separate deal.

Bank of America was not a wholly owned Berkshire subsidiary. It was a large public-company investment, unlike Berkshire’s operating businesses such as GEICO or Berkshire Hathaway Energy.