Bank of America 2005 Annual Report Download - page 38

PART I
Item 1. BUSINESS
General
Bank of America Corporation (the “Corporation”) is a Delaware corporation, a bank holding company and a financial
holding company under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act. The Corporation was incorporated in 1998 as part of the merger of
BankAmerica Corporation with NationsBank Corporation. The principal executive offices of the Corporation are located
in the Bank of America Corporate Center, Charlotte, North Carolina 28255.
Additional information relating to our businesses and our subsidiaries is included in the information set forth in
pages 26 through 42 of Item 7, Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
and Note 20 of the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 8 of this report.
Primary Market Areas
Through its banking subsidiaries (the “Banks”) and various nonbanking subsidiaries, the Corporation provides a
diversified range of banking and nonbanking financial services and products, primarily throughout the Northeast
(Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Rhode Island), the Mid-Atlantic (Maryland, New Jersey, New
York, Pennsylvania, Virginia and the District of Columbia), the Midwest (Illinois, Iowa, Kansas and Missouri), the
Southeast (Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee), the Southwest (Arizona, Arkansas, New
Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas), the Northwest (Oregon, Idaho and Washington) and the West (California, Idaho and
Nevada) regions of the United States and in selected international markets. Management believes that these are
desirable regions in which to be located. Based on the most recent available data, personal income in the states in these
regions as a whole rose 6.6 percent year-to-year through the third quarter of 2005, compared to growth of 3.3 percent in
the rest of the United States. In addition, the population in these states as a whole rose an estimated 1.3 percent
between 2004 and 2005, compared to growth of 0.4 percent in the rest of the United States. Through December 2005, the
average rate of unemployment in these states was 4.8 percent, ranging from 3.3 percent in Florida and Virginia to 7.0
percent in South Carolina, compared to a rate of unemployment of 5.1 percent in the rest of the United States. The
number of housing permits authorized in 2005 was nearly 9 percent higher than in 2004 in these states as a whole.
The Corporation has the leading bank deposit market share position in California, Connecticut, Florida, Maryland,
Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey and Washington. In addition, the Corporation ranks second in terms of bank
deposit market share in Arizona, Delaware, Kansas, Missouri, New Mexico, North Carolina, Rhode Island, South
Carolina and Texas; third in Arkansas, District of Columbia, Georgia and Maine; fourth in Idaho, New Hampshire,
Oklahoma, Oregon and Virginia; fifth in Tennessee; sixth in New York; eighth in Iowa; tenth in Pennsylvania; and
fourteenth in Illinois.
Acquisition and Disposition Activity
As part of its operations, the Corporation regularly evaluates the potential acquisition of, and holds discussions
with, various financial institutions and other businesses of a type eligible for financial holding company ownership or
control. In addition, the Corporation regularly analyzes the values of, and submits bids for, the acquisition of customer-
based funds and other liabilities and assets of such financial institutions and other businesses. The Corporation also
regularly considers the potential disposition of certain of its assets, branches, subsidiaries or lines of businesses. As a
general rule, the Corporation publicly announces any material acquisitions or dispositions when a definitive agreement
has been reached.
On April 1, 2004, the Corporation completed its merger with FleetBoston Financial Corporation, and, on June 13,
2005, Bank of America, N.A. completed its merger with Fleet National Bank. On January 1, 2006, the Corporation
completed its merger with MBNA Corporation. Additional information on these mergers and the Corporation’s other
acquisition activity is included under Notes 2 and 3 of the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 8
which are incorporated herein by reference.
Government Supervision and Regulation
The following discussion describes elements of an extensive regulatory framework applicable to bank holding
companies, financial holding companies and banks and specific information about the Corporation and its subsidiaries.
Federal regulation of banks, bank holding companies and financial holding companies is intended primarily for the
protection of depositors and the Bank Insurance Fund rather than for the protection of stockholders and creditors.
General
As a registered bank holding company and financial holding company, the Corporation is subject to the supervision
of, and regular inspection by, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the “Federal Reserve Board”). The
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