Bank of America posts drop in first-quarter profit

The bank reported a 9% rise in consumer banking revenue to $8.8 billion in the quarter ended March. Profit applicable to common shareholders fell to $6.6 billion, or 80 cents per share, for the quarter ended March 31 from $7.56 billion, or 86 cents per share, a year earlier.

Bank of America Corp reported a fall in first-quarter profit on Monday, as a slowdown in global deal-making weighed on its investment banking businesses.

Big U.S. banks benefited from a deal-making boom last year after the Federal Reserve pumped liquidity into capital markets to mitigate the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. This year, however, investment banking revenue have taken a hit as companies delayed takeovers and stock market listings amid a surge in volatility in equity markets.

The second-largest U.S. bank by assets released $362 million from its reserves that it had set aside for bad loans. The bank reported a 9% rise in consumer banking revenue to $8.8 billion in the quarter ended March.

Profit applicable to common shareholders fell to $6.6 billion, or 80 cents per share, for the quarter ended March 31 from $7.56 billion, or 86 cents per share, a year earlier. Analysts on average had expected a profit of 75 cents per share, according to the IBES estimate from Refinitiv.