Bank Of America Online Investing

Merrill Edge At A Glance

Merrill Edge Review Summary

Merrill Edge is a US-based stockbroker founded in 2010 by Bank of America . BofA acquired Merrill Lynch during the 2008 financial crisis, and the rationale for launching Merrill Edge was to combine its online investing arm and Merrill Lynch’s investment expertise. Merrill Edge offers US stocks, ETFs, options, and bonds. It is regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority .

Merrill Edge is considered safe because its parent company is a bank with a long track record and solid reputation, it discloses its financials, and is regulated by top-tier regulators.

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Bank Of America Expands Its Cashpro Payment Api Capability To Over 350 Payment Types

Enhanced API Also Supports Bundled Payments

Bank of America today announced the launch of an expanded CashPro Payment API through which clients can access more than 350 payment types and bundle payments. The development comes as Application Programming Interfaces continue to transform business-to-business and business-to-consumer transactions given the ability of APIs to provide real-time data, reduce costs and improve operational efficiencies.

âA significant feature of APIs is their ability to support 24/7 processing. Weâre seeing that play out with our Payment API where 20% of the volume is being processed during the weekend. The enhanced API will give clients even more options to process payments in multiple jurisdictions and countries at any time of the day,â said Tom Durkin, global product head for CashPro Platform in Global Transaction Services at Bank of America. âThe development is part of our multi-year digital strategy to make business easier and more secure.â

The breadth of capabilities of the enhanced CashPro Payment API spans:

• More than 350 payment types in 38 markets globally
• 7 real-time payments schemes and services such as Zelle in the U.S. and Pix in Brazil
• Domestic and cross-border wires
• Local payment instruments such as Brazil Boletos
• Ability to execute payments in bundles, helping clients avoid or reduce backlogs in payment queues

Bank of America

Louise Hennessy, Bank of AmericaPhone: 1.646.858.6471

• Awards & recognition

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– If a broker or brokerage firm is registered- What has been disclosed to regulators- About a broker’s past experience- What a broker or brokerage firm is qualified to do

You are leaving Bank of America website and being redirected to FINRA’S BrokerCheck. The website is not owned by Bank of America, Bank of America® or their affiliates and is subject to separate terms and privacy policies.

This Brokerage Is Right For You If:

Taking into consideration its pros and cons, we think a Merrill Edge account would be a good fit for you if the following statements apply to you:

• You can make the most of the free stock and ETF trades. This is a valuable perk that helps keep more money in your pocket.
• You trade options occasionally, but not heavily. Merrill Edge isn’t the best stock broker for options, since the per-contract commission is slightly higher than what you’d be charged for the lowest cost brokers. That said, options trades are free and the per-contract fee is competitive.
• You value customer support. Merrill Edge is one of the few discount brokers that has a large branch network in virtually every single major metropolitan area. If there’s a Bank of America office near you, help is just a short drive away.

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Content And Service Availability

Bank of America or its Affiliates may make changes to the Sites and reserves the right to do so without prior notice to you. Client acknowledges that not all products and services listed or discussed in the Sites are available in all geographic areas. Your eligibility for particular products and services is subject to final determination and acceptance by Bank of America or its Affiliates.

Investment Research And User Interface

On the research side of things, Merrill Edge provides investing insights and third-party analysis from Morningstar, Inc., CFRA, Moody’s, and multiple other investment analysis companies. You’ll also have access to Bank of America Global Research, and you can skim the latest stock market quotes and commentary on the brokerage’s digital apps.

When it comes to its available platforms, you’ll have three to choose from: the Merrill Edge web platform, the mobile app, and Merrill Edge Market Pro.

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Investment Banking Revenue Has Been Slumping All Year Due To Volatile Market Conditions

Large U.S. bank stocks will formally kick off the third-quarter earnings season when JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup report their results tomorrow morning.

All eyes will be on the large banks as investors try to gain further clarity into how the economy is doing, with many fearing a more severe recession on the horizon. Investors will also be trying to get a read on how the U.S. consumer is holding up. Lastly, results and guidance from management could lead to revisions on future earnings projections, which could impact stock prices.

While the higher-rate environment is expected to boost revenue in banks’ lending and securities businesses, it has been a big headwind on investment banking. Will this trend continue for JPMorgan, Citigroup, and Bank of America in their third-quarter earnings reports? Let’s take a look.

Avoid The Investing Scams

The risk involved with investing in stocks is not just related to the price of shares. Investors also need to be on guard against scams that may come their way during this time.

Many people look to take advantage of the current investment climate by promising returns that they cannot deliver.

Investors should never buy into any offer that seems too good to be true or seeks upfront fees without explaining how those funds will be used.

To avoid scams, investors need to know what their risk tolerance is and invest no more than the amount of money they are willing to lose.

When considering which broker to use, consider the following brokers above. All of these have millions of active users and have stringent cybersecurity protections.

Further, they offer secure investments that trade openly on exchanges, allowing further protections of your money from theft or fraud.

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Material In Its Entirety

All materials at these Sites are meant to be reviewed in their entirety, including any footnotes, legal disclaimers, restrictions or disclosures, or any copyright or proprietary notices. Any disclaimers, restrictions, disclosure or hedge clauses apply to any partial document or material in the same manner as they do to the whole, and will be deemed incorporated in the portion of any material or document that you consult or download.

Bank Of America Preferred Rewards

The Bank of America Preferred Rewards program is a big Merrill Edge investing perk, especially for people who are already Bank of America customers.

Any customer with at least $20,000 in all of their Bank of America accounts and Merrill investment accounts combined is eligible. Preferred Rewards has three tiers, and larger balances mean larger perks. Here’s a chart that shows some of the more valuable Preferred Rewards benefits that might interest Merrill Edge brokerage clients:

In short, if you’re a Merrill Edge or Bank of America customer, especially one with a relatively large account, you could earn more interest and save money on other financial products.

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How We Ranked Fees

We ranked Merrill Edge’s fee levels as low, average or high based on how they compare to those of all reviewed brokers.

To get things rolling, let’s go over some lingo related to broker fees. What you need to keep an eye on are trading fees and non-trading fees.

• Trading fees occur when you trade. These can be commissions, spreads, financing rates and conversion fees.
• Non-trading fees include charges not directly related to trading, like withdrawal fees or inactivity fees.

In the sections below, you will find the most relevant fees of Merrill Edge for each asset class. For example, in the case of stock investing the most important fees are commissions.

We also compared Merrill Edge’s fees with those of two similar brokers we selected, TD Ameritrade and Charles Schwab. This selection is based on objective factors such as products offered, client profile, fee structure, etc. See a more detailed rundown of Merrill Edge alternatives.

To have a clear overview of Merrill Edge, let’s start with trading fees.

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Custom planning

Custom Lending, Trust and Estate Planning, Philanthropy, and more.

Merrill Guided Investing

• Form CRS & Other Resources

*Other fees may apply. Free and $0 means there is no commission charged for these trades. $0 option trades are subject to a $0.65 per-contract fee. Sales are subject to a transaction fee of between $0.01 and $0.03 per $1,000 of principal. There are costs associated with owning ETFs. To learn more about Merrill pricing, visit our Pricing page.

**Other fees may apply. Sales of ETFs are subject to a transaction fee of between $0.01 and $0.03 per $1,000 of principal. There are costs associated with owning ETFs and mutual funds. To learn more about Merrill pricing, visit merrilledge.com/pricing.

1Diversification, asset allocation and rebalancing do not ensure a profit or protect against loss in declining markets. As with other investments, mutual funds and ETFs are subject to market conditions and other associated risks. There is no guarantee that any specific fund or investment strategy will meet its investment objectives.

3BofA Global Research is research produced by BofA Securities, Inc. and/or one or more of its affiliates. BofAS is a registered broker-dealer, Member SIPC, and wholly owned subsidiary of Bank of America Corporation.

Investment products, insurance and annuity products:

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Consent To Electronic Delivery

You agree to receive certain documents and information provided by Bank of America and its Affiliates through the Sites and/or through email provided to you via the Sites. This delivery will generally consist of certain Content on the Sites, and certain other documents relating to Bank of America and its Affiliates business. This electronic provision and delivery will be regarded by you as appropriate delivery pursuant to any delivery requirements under the various statutes and rules, where applicable, of the Securities and Exchange Commission, the National Association of Securities Dealers and any state or other jurisdiction. You acknowledge that you have the appropriate technological equipment to use the Sites and to receive email via the Internet and understand that your use of the Internet may incur certain operational costs such as monthly fees for a service provider. You agree to notify Bank of America or the applicable Affiliate in the event that you no longer desire to receive content through this delivery procedure and will allow a reasonable amount of time to permit proper delivery to you through other means.

Where Merrill Edge Shines

Integration with Bank of America: Merrill Edge is a product of Bank of Americas acquisition of Merrill Lynch, and its clear that the parent company has made the effort to create a seamless experience for clients who use both services. You can view Bank of America accounts and Merrill Edge accounts with a single login, and real-time transfers move money between accounts instantly.

Research and data: Merrill Edge appeals to casual traders with a powerful combination of robust research and competitive pricing.

Educational resources: In addition to a library of educational content, a podcast, videos, webinars, virtual events and free tools and calculators, Merrill Edge has an Idea Builder tool to help newer investors find investments that appeal to them, such as ESG products.

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How Do We Review Brokers

NerdWallets comprehensive review process evaluates and ranks the largest U.S. brokers by assets under management, along with emerging industry players. Our aim is to provide an independent assessment of providers to help arm you with information to make sound, informed judgements on which ones will best meet your needs. We adhere to strict guidelines for editorial integrity.

We collect data directly from providers through detailed questionnaires, and conduct first-hand testing and observation through provider demonstrations. The questionnaire answers, combined with demonstrations, interviews of personnel at the providers and our specialists hands-on research, fuel our proprietary assessment process that scores each providers performance across more than 20 factors. The final output produces star ratings from poor to excellent . Ratings are rounded to the nearest half-star.

For more details about the categories considered when rating brokers and our process, read our full methodology.

Now: Innovating On Behalf Of Clients

With the markets in crisis, the company focuses on what it does bestinnovating on behalf of clients. Schwab goes mobile and to the cloud, exchange-traded funds explode in popularity, and money management capabilities grow. By the end of 2012, client assets have grown to $2 trillion.

2008: The company enhances Schwab.com, improves StreetSmart Pro, upgrades risk management tools on StreetSmart.com, and launches an online community focused on active trading. Walter W. Bettinger II is appointed president, chief executive officer, and a member of the board of directors effective October 1, 2008.

2009: Schwab introduces Real Life Retirement Services with practical tools and resources for those nearing retirement. Charles Schwab Bank launches the Schwab Bank High Yield Investor Savings account. The firm cuts fees on its equity index funds and adds a new large-cap growth fund to its Laudus funds lineup. Schwab offers first ETFs that trade commission-free online at Schwab.com.9

Brokerage Products: Not FDIC-Insured No Bank Guarantee May Lose Value

Investors should consider carefully information contained in the prospectus, including investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses. You can request a prospectus by calling 800-435-4000. Please read the prospectus carefully before investing.

2. Schwab Charitable Fund is an independent nonprofit organization that has entered into service agreements with certain affiliates of The Charles Schwab Corporation.

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How To Open Your Account

We really liked the fully digital, fast, and user-friendly account-opening process. It took less than one day to open an account without an already existing bank account. This simplicity and speed are unusual for US brokers for instance, the account opening at Interactive Brokers is very complicated. However, it is similar to competitor firm Chase You Invest, which is also connected to a banking company and has an easy account-opening process.

So what does the process look like? At first, you have to go through a 5-step registration process, which takes roughly 20 minutes. Most of the questions are related to personal information and data, while others inquire whether you would like to apply separately to trade on margin, apply for a debit card, or apply for check-writing privileges.

During this process, you have to verify your identity and residency by entering the following:

• Whether you are a US resident
• US Phone number
• Address, marital status, date of birth
• Net worth and primary source of household income

For Residents Of France:

The Sites do not constitute a solicitation to enter into a transaction involving financial instruments, is not being distributed in the context of a public offer in France within the meaning of Article L. 4111 of the Monetary and Financial Code, and has thus not been submitted to the COB for prior approval and clearance procedure. Any offers, sales or distribution of financial instruments through the Sites shall only be made in France to qualified investors as defined in and in accordance with Article L. 411-2 of the Monetary and Financial Code and d?cret no. 98880 dated 1st October, 1998. The contents of the Sites may not be redistributed or reproduced by any User. The Sites are made available with the understanding that Users will make investment decisions for their own account with the conditions set out in d?cret no. 98880 dated 1st October, 1998. By using the Sites, Users undertake not to transfer, directly or indirectly, any financial instrument acquired through the Sites to the public in France, other than in compliance with applicable laws and regulation. Services hereunder may be provided by Banc of America Securities, Limited, as agent or otherwise.

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Pricing And Market Information

Actual prices can be obtained only on a real-time, expressly agreed-upon basis. Any indicative valuations on the Sites are provided for information only. They are not an offer to enter into, transfer and assign or terminate any transaction, or a commitment by Bank of America or its Affiliates to make such an offer. An indicative valuation may differ substantially from an actual value. Such estimates do not necessarily reflect Bank of Americas or its Affiliates internal bookkeeping or theoretical model-based valuations. Certain factors, which may not have been assessed for purposes of these valuations, including, for example, notional amounts, credit spreads, underlying volatility, costs of carry or use of capital and profit, may substantially affect a stated valuation. Indicative valuations may vary significantly from indicative valuations available from other sources. While Bank of America and its Affiliates have obtained the information on which these evaluations are based from sources they believe are reliable, Bank of America and its Affiliates make no representations or warranties with respect to any indicative valuations. Prior to the execution of a Transaction based upon the Content of these Sites, Client is advised to consult with its broker or other financial representative to verify pricing information.