Merrill Lynch Reports Solid Profit
From the Desk of Jim Eccleston at Eccleston Law Offices:
Bank of America Merrill Lynch profited 26.6% in 2013, and aims for 30% profit margin in coming years. The Firm believes that the main factor boosting its business will be the firm’s ability to team its brokerage and banking operations.
Banking and lending businesses have been a major focus and growth area for the wirehouses as they move to provide more financial planning products to wealthy clients. Merrill Lynch and U.S. Trust, Bank of America's private-banking unit, are leading the pack. The loan balance is up 8.4% from last year, and the number of wealth management bankers and credit specialists has increased to 700 since Merrill Lynch was acquired by Bank of America.
The firm's wealth management business is the third most profitable division at the firm behind the global banking division and the consumer bank.Wealth management firms generally average about a 25% profit margin, according to Echelon Partners, a research and valuation firm. Merrill Lynch’s wealth management unit reported a 35% profit margin last year.
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