CHARLOTTE, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Digital engagement continues to grow rapidly at Bank of America, with more clients making online and mobile primary channels for more of their banking and lending with Bank of America and investing with Merrill. Today 85% of deposit transactions are being made through the Bank of America app, ATMs and other automated channels – driven by nearly 48 million checks deposited digitally during the second quarter alone.
“We are delivering the best financial technology to help make our clients’ financial lives better,” said David Tyrie, head of digital at Bank of America. “To elevate each client’s digital journey across their entire relationship with us, we focus on their unique needs and aspirations so that we can deliver individualized digital experiences.”
As of the beginning of last month, more than 70% of Bank of America clients are actively using digital channels for more of their needs, including 72% of consumer and small business clients, 80% of wealth management clients across Merrill and Bank of America Private Bank, and 75% of global banking clients.
- More than 4.4 million clients have engaged with Life Plan®, making it the company’s most rapidly adopted feature to date. All generations are engaging with Life Plan, particularly Millennials (43%), to set and track financial goals. Life Plan is also helping to deepen relationships, with assets among Bank of America households who use Life Plan having grown nearly 20% since its launch in late 2020.
- More than 21 million clients have used Erica to complete more than 430 million interactions. Erica®, Bank of America’s AI-driven virtual financial assistant, which launched three years ago, is providing even more efficiency to clients. With Erica, 99% of clients are able to find the information that they need without needing a service call. In the first half of 2021, Erica completed 200 million interactions – more than double the interactions in the first 18 months after launch.
- Bank of America clients used digital channels to schedule a record 871,000 appointments with financial specialists during the second quarter. This is up more than 31% year over year, and drove 31% of all financial center traffic between April and June.
- Over 14 million Bank of America clients, including small businesses, use Zelle®. Bank of America clients sent and received 189 million transfers worth $56.5 billion in Q2 alone, up 62% and 76% year-over-year respectively. Transaction volume across small business clients has increased 123% year-over-year as more businesses embrace digital convenience and security.
- Wealth management clients have broadened the way they interact with their advisors, relying more on secure texting and virtual meetings. During the quarter, a record 77% of eligible checks were deposited through automated channels by Merrill Lynch Wealth Management clients, and 73% by Bank of America Private Bank clients, up from 75% and 69% respectively.
- Digital now makes up 25% of small business sales, up from 19% last year. From small businesses to large corporations, companies also expect a compelling digital experience and are turning to these channels for more of their needs. Cash Flow Monitor users increased 34% year-over-year, and 77,000 small business clients accessed their credit score digitally since the feature became available in March 2021. Global Banking clients’ digital engagement is at record levels for mobile app sign-ins, payments through the mobile app, and electronic signature and document exchange. In fact, the highest month ever of CashPro® app downloads took place in June 2021, 16% higher than the 2021 monthly download average.
Recent awards and recognition
Bank of America’s digital leadership has been further solidified via various awards and recognitions throughout the first half of 2021, including No. 1 rankings from J.D. Power in customer satisfaction among national banks for both online banking and mobile banking apps. Most recently, Javelin Strategy & Research named Bank of America “Best in Class,” its highest honor, in both mobile and online banking for the fifth consecutive year. In addition, the company received Celent’s 2021 Model Bank award for Customer Engagement and 2021 Model Wealth Manager award for Emerging Technology; and Keynova Group ranked Bank of America No. 1 Overall in Online and Mobile Banking Functionality, and No. 1 in its digital scorecard for small businesses. Bank of America also received top ratings from Barlow’s 2021 Annual Report on Digital Business Banking, ranking No. 1 in both mobile adoption and desktop online banking test drive and No. 2 in online banking adoption and mobile banking test drive. Global Finance named Bank of America its Outstanding Financial Innovator – Global for 2021.
Last month, Bank of America announced that its wealth management businesses, including Merrill Lynch Wealth Management and Bank of America Private Bank, were recognized by three industry organizations for digital innovation and leadership including Aite Group, Professional Wealth Management and WealthManagement.com.
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Bank of America
Bank of America is one of the world’s leading financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle-market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk management products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving approximately 66 million consumer and small business clients with approximately 4,300 retail financial centers, approximately 17,000 ATMs, and award-winning digital banking with approximately 41 million active users, including approximately 32 million mobile users. Bank of America is a global leader in wealth management, corporate and investment banking and trading across a broad range of asset classes, serving corporations, governments, institutions and individuals around the world. Bank of America offers industry-leading support to approximately 3 million small business households through a suite of innovative, easy-to-use online products and services. The company serves clients through operations across the United States, its territories and approximately 35 countries. Bank of America Corporation stock (NYSE: BAC) is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
Zelle and the Zelle-related marks are wholly owned by Early Warning Services, LLC and are used herein under license.
Bank of America Life Plan is a registered trademark of the Bank of America Corporation.
Bank of America Private Bank is a division of Bank of America, N.A., Member FDIC, and a wholly owned subsidiary of Bank of America Corporation (“BofA Corp.”).
Banking products are provided by Bank of America, N.A. and affiliated banks, Members FDIC and wholly owned subsidiaries of Bank of America Corporation.
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