Bank of America calls time on century-old Merrill Lynch brand
Bank of America is casting tradition aside in pursuit of a simplified corporate image after agreeing to curtail its century-old Merrill Lynch brand, simplifying it to just ‘Merrill’ and shedding the investment bank brand from some businesses entirely.
Bank of America calls time on century-old Merrill Lynch brand
The Merrill Lynch moniker has been in use for 105 years, latterly serving as the identity of the bank’s wealth management division. Going forward this will be abbreviated to Merrill and retain the familiar rearing bull motif. More abrupt change is headed for the financial providers' investment banking and trading units which will now simply be referred to as Bank of America.
Accompanying the name changes will be a new logo complete with the slogan ‘what would you like the power to do?’, part of a shift in emphasis from investment returns to customer service.
Chief executive officer Brian Moynihan remarked: “We are committed to living our purpose and driving responsible growth on a unified basis for all we serve. We are taking these next steps in the way our brand is seen over the coming weeks and months to better reflect this.”
The Merrill Lynch identity originates from an investment banking and brokerage business founded by Charles Merrill and Edmund French in 1915, establishing itself as a financial giant whose impact still resonates today, a heritage which has proven remarkably resilient in the unsentimental world of investment banking.
The Merrill Lynch name has survived a number of transitions and takeovers, most recently following its sale to Bank of America in 2008 at the height of the sub-prime mortgage crisis.
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Bank of America Corporation is a multinational banking and financial services corporation headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. It is ranked...
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