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Bank of America Places FHLBank Settlement in the Rearview

BankofAmericaBank of America announced this week that it has settled four mortgage-related complaints with a Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLBank), the bank stated in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

The company disclosed in the SEC filing that on April 25, 2016, Bank of America and The FHLBank of Seattle (which merged with FHLBank of Des Moines last year) settled these claims for $190 million, "substantially all of which was previously accrued."

A spokesperson for Bank of America and the FHLBank of Des Moines did not immediately respond to a comment request at the time of publication for this article.

Click here to view the SEC Filing.

In June 2015, The FHLBank of Des Moines announced in a press release that it will merge with the FHLBank of Seattle. More details concerning this new combination will be included in a related Form 8-K that FHLBank of Des Moines will file with the SEC.

"The paperwork has been formally approved and signed and the merger of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines with the Federal Home Loan Bank of Seattle is now official,” said Melvin L. Watt, FHFA director. “As the regulator of the Federal Home Loan Bank System, FHFA views this voluntary merger as consistent with safety and soundness and with the mission of the System to support home mortgage lending and community investment.”

This voluntary merger will constitute the first in the 80-year history of the FHLBank system, the cooperative said. The merger closed on May 31, 2015, the two Banks now operate as one.

It was a tough first quarter for Bank of America, as the bank experienced a year-over-year decline of 13 percent in net income down to $2.7 billion, or earnings per diluted share of $0.21, according to the bank's Q1 earnings statement released Thursday.

The bank's net income was also down by $0.6 billion over-the-quarter from Q4's net income of $3.3 billion, according to Bank of America.

Consumer performed well for Bank of American in Q1, with consumer banking's net income jumping by 22 percent up to $1.8 billion as positive operating leverage was created by higher revenue from increased customer activity combined with lower expenses. The bank's sales and trading revenue were down by 16 percent in Q1, however.

Bank of America's Legacy Assets and Servicing revenue was down by $235 million, from $914 million down to $669 million due to a decline in net interest income on lower loan balances and a drop in non-interest income. The bank's mortgage banking income declined due to lower servicing fees and mortgage servicing rights net of hedge results. The factors causing the decline were partially offset by gains on certain loan sales, according to the earnings statement. The number of residential loans serviced by Bank of America that were 60-plus days delinquent declined over-the-year by 42 percent, down to 88,000, during Q1.

"This quarter, we benefited from good consumer and commercial banking activity," said Brian Moynihan, CEO. "Our business segments earned $4.5 billion, up 16 percent from the year-ago quarter. This was partially offset by valuation adjustments from lower long-term interest rates and annual compensation expenses. Despite volatile markets, our Global Markets business produced solid earnings. As always, we are focused on loan and deposit growth and managing expenses. By doing that, we continue to improve on what we do best: helping consumers live their financial lives and helping businesses grow and employ more people."

Click here to view Bank of America's complete Q1 earnings statement.

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