Bank of America 2005 Annual Report Download - page 25

24 Bank of America 2005
How We Grow: Working Together
n 2005, several transactions completed with the collaboration of formerly siloed business
units proved that Bank of America’s new focus on working together produces results—
for customers and shareholders.
These deals are merely the most visible examples of how Bank of America is
leveraging its expertise across divisions to say “yes” to more customers more often. Work-
ing together, the bank’s units will soon be able to match consumers who need higher-risk
Collaborating to create more value
Working together, business units close high-profile transactions
I
financing with institutional clients who want to invest in
that level of risk. As a result, we will reap increased profits and
shareholder value while serving the needs of many customers,
both consumers and investors.
In one example, Banc of America Securities provided
MetLife with an integrated solution for the acquisition
of Citigroup’s Travelers Life and Annuity and essentially
all of Citigroup’s international insurance business. As a
financial advisor to MetLife, we also served as joint global
book-running coordinator on multiple securities offerings
totaling $6.9 billion to finance the $11.8 billion deal.
This acquisition financing was one of the largest ever
when it was announced in June. Launched and concluded
in a three-week period, it accessed multiple markets to
optimize the financing sources—the perpetual preferred
market, mandatory convertible market, U.S. high-grade
market and sterling market. Various teams worked together
to develop this highly complex financing plan to minimize
the cost for the client and maximize both earnings per
share and return on equity. The success of the MetLife deal
highlights the effectiveness of the bank’s ability to provide
clients with cost-effective, multiproduct solutions.
Another example of how strong teamwork differentiates
Bank of America was the leveraged buyout (LBO) of Toys
“R” Us by Bain Capital, Vornado Realty Trust and KKR. In
serving as both debt provider and financial advisor to the
financial sponsors, the bank was instrumental in the
completion of the LBO. When announced in March, this deal
($6.6 billion plus the assumption of debt) was the largest
retail LBO in U.S. history and the third-largest LBO of any
kind. The transaction was named Euromoney magazine’s
2005 “Financing Package of the Year” and Investment
Dealers’ Digest’s “Real Estate Deal of the Year.”
Closing the transaction required partnerships from around
the globe, including several U.S. and European industry groups
from the Investment Banking team; the Leveraged Finance
and High-Yield Capital Markets teams; Commercial Mortgage-
Backed Securities; Commercial Banking; the Derivatives
product group; and Real Estate Syndications.
These transactions show how our diverse capabilities, when
combined with our innovation, hard work and cooperation,
accelerate our growth.