Bank of America Private Bank
Bank of America's private banking and wealth management business for high-net-worth individuals, families, institutions, and foundations.
Last updated November 4, 2026
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Overview
Bank of America Private Bank is the private banking and wealth management business historically associated with U.S. Trust, one of the oldest trust companies in the United States. Its origins trace to the establishment of the United States Trust Company of New York in 1853 under a New York state charter. The original business was designed to act as executor and trustee for both individuals and institutions, providing a specialized fiduciary service at a time when organized trust companies were still uncommon. The venture was backed by approximately $1 million from a group of prominent investors, including civic leader and former New York mayor Cornelius Lawrence, insurance executive John Aikman Stewart, inventor and industrialist Peter Cooper, retailer Marshall Field, banker Shepherd Knapp, and railroad and steel entrepreneur Erastus Corning. During the nineteenth century, the company developed two closely related areas of business. It administered personal trusts for wealthy families while also acting as a corporate trustee for companies issuing securities to finance major infrastructure and industrial projects. Its historical corporate relationships included clients connected with railroads and the Panama Canal, while its individual clientele included members of prominent American families. By the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the firm had built a reputation around fiduciary continuity, asset stewardship, and institutional stability. It reported more than $1 billion in assets held in trust by 1928 and survived the 1929 stock-market crash and the ensuing Depression. The organization gradually broadened its services beyond traditional trusteeship. It added investment management, estate administration, banking, institutional investment support, and more personalized advisory services. By 1965, trust, investment, and estate-administration activities represented most of its gross income. Banking and related services expanded during the following decade, eventually accounting for about half of earnings in 1977. This growth was followed by a difficult restructuring period. Poor investment performance, the loss of pension-fund relationships, the disappearance of municipal bond certificates from a vault, and pressure on profitability led the company to reduce some activities, close its Geneva and London offices, and concentrate more heavily on domestic fiduciary and wealth services. In the 1980s, U.S. Trust sold certain commercial, industrial, and real-estate portfolios, discontinued some lending activities, and created Financial Technologies International to market software to financial institutions. It also changed its account-minimum policy and expanded its presence across the United States during the 1990s. These changes helped reposition the organization toward private wealth management and trust services rather than broad commercial lending. Charles Schwab acquired U.S. Trust in May 2000 in a stock transaction valued at approximately $2.7 billion. The combination was intended to strengthen Schwab's wealth management platform, but the cultures of an established fiduciary institution and a discount brokerage business proved difficult to integrate. In November 2006, Schwab agreed to sell U.S. Trust to Bank of America for approximately $3.3 billion in cash; the transaction was completed in 2007. The acquisition gave Bank of America a long-established private banking platform and expanded its capacity to serve wealthy individuals, families, foundations, and institutional clients. Keith Banks became president of U.S. Trust in 2008. The business provides investment management, wealth structuring, financial and succession planning, philanthropy advice, specialty-asset management, family-office services, custom lending, financial administration, and trust stewardship. Its model emphasizes multidisciplinary advisory teams and customized solutions rather than standardized retail banking products. The business was hi…
History
Bank of America Private Bank descends from the United States Trust Company of New York, founded in 1853 under a New York state charter. The company was established by a group of wealthy New York investors to serve as an executor and trustee for individual and institutional assets. Its early fiduciary model was distinctive because dedicated trust companies were still relatively uncommon in the United States. Cornelius Lawrence became the first president, while John Aikman Stewart served as secretary. Other early backers included Peter Cooper, Marshall Field, Shepherd Knapp, and Erastus Corning. The firm's nineteenth-century development combined personal trust administration with corporate trusteeship. It supported companies that issued securities for railroads, industrial expansion, and other large projects, while also managing personal trusts for wealthy families. By the late 1800s, it had become associated with prominent clients and a reputation for institutional reliability. It continued operating through successive financial crises and had more than $1 billion in trusted assets by 1928. The company also expanded the personal dimension of its services, eventually offering advice connected with family education, careers, and long-term planning. U.S. Trust broadened its activities during the twentieth century. Trust operations, investment management, and estate administration were central to the business by the 1960s, while banking services and investment support for other banks and insurers became increasingly important. The expansion created earnings growth but also exposed the company to investment-performance problems, operational setbacks, and changing market conditions. During the late 1970s, it lost significant pension relationships, faced the disappearance of municipal bond certificates from a vault, and reduced its international and lower-asset activities. Geneva and London offices were closed, and the company concentrated more heavily on domestic wealth and trust services. The 1980s brought further restructuring. U.S. Trust discontinued certain commercial and real-estate lending activities, sold portfolios valued at approximately $275 million, and established Financial Technologies International to develop and license software for financial institutions. It also lowered its account minimum from the earlier $1 million to $2 million range to $250,000 in 1987. During the 1990s, the firm expanded geographically by opening and acquiring offices in multiple parts of the continental United States. Charles Schwab purchased U.S. Trust in May 2000 for approximately $2.7 billion in stock. The acquisition was intended to give Schwab a broader wealth management platform and reduce the loss of clients to larger full-service wealth managers. In practice, integration was complicated by differences between Schwab's discount-brokerage culture and U.S. Trust's exclusive fiduciary orientation. Schwab agreed in November 2006 to sell the business to Bank of America for approximately $3.3 billion in cash, and the transaction closed in 2007. The deal added a long-established private banking and trust operation to Bank of America's financial services group. Keith Banks became president of U.S. Trust in 2008. The business now operates as Bank of America Private Bank and serves complex wealth needs through advisory teams. Its capabilities include investment management, wealth structuring, estate and succession planning, philanthropy, family-office services, specialty-asset management, custom lending, financial administration, and trust stewardship. The business is not separately listed and forms part of Bank of America's broader wealth management operations.
- 2008
Keith Banks became president
[1]Keith Banks was identified as president of U.S. Trust.
- 2007
Became part of Bank of America
[1]Bank of America completed its purchase of U.S. Trust after agreeing to acquire it from Charles Schwab.
- 2000
Acquired by Charles Schwab
[1]Charles Schwab acquired U.S. Trust in a stock transaction valued at approximately $2.7 billion.
- 1987
Lowered account minimum
[1]The firm reduced its liquid-asset account minimum to $250,000.
- 1977
Banking became a major earnings contributor
[1]Banking activities accounted for approximately half of the company's earnings during a period of business expansion.
- 1958
Introduced its first major advertising campaign
[1]U.S. Trust began advertising in society pages and cultural publications, including The New Yorker and programs associated with major New York arts organizations.
- 1928
Trusted assets exceeded $1 billion
[1]The company reported more than $1 billion in assets held in trust.
- 1886
Established a reputation for stability
[1]The trust company had developed a recognized reputation for reliability and financial stability.
- 1853
United States Trust Company of New York founded
[1]The company was established under a New York state charter as a fiduciary institution serving individuals and organizations.
Products and positioning
A high-touch private bank and fiduciary wealth manager focused on complex financial, investment, credit, estate, philanthropic, and family-governance needs.
Wealth management
Investment management
Customized portfolio management and investment advisory services for high-net-worth individuals, families, institutions, and foundations. The offering is positioned within a broader planning relationship rather than as a standalone mass-market brokerage product.
Financial planning
Wealth structuring and succession planning
Advisory work designed to organize, preserve, and transfer wealth across generations. Services may address estate planning, succession, family governance, and the coordination of legal, tax, investment, and fiduciary considerations.
Trust services · 1853
Trust and fiduciary administration
The business's historic core involves acting as trustee, executor, administrator, or fiduciary steward for personal and institutional assets. The service emphasizes continuity, administration, governance, and the execution of clients' long-term instructions.
Private banking
Custom credit and lending
Tailored lending solutions for clients with complex balance sheets, concentrated assets, liquidity requirements, or specialized financing needs. The referenced material identifies custom credit as part of the private bank's service range.
Wealth management
Family-office services
Coordinated support for families managing substantial and often multigenerational wealth. The service can integrate administration, investment oversight, family governance, philanthropy, and succession-related requirements.
Advisory services
Philanthropic and specialty-asset management
Advisory and management capabilities addressing charitable objectives and assets that may require specialized analysis, administration, valuation, or investment treatment beyond conventional portfolios.
Controversies
2000
Bank Secrecy Act compliance order and fine
U.S. Trust Corporation received a cease-and-desist order requiring stronger anti-money-laundering policies related to the Bank Secrecy Act and was fined $10 million.
1934
Treasury-bill theft from a company vault
Treasury bills were stolen in an incident associated with a French-based crime syndicate. The matter attracted federal attention, but employees were reported to have been fully exonerated of involvement.
Marketing campaigns
- 1958Society and cultural publication advertising
United States
U.S. Trust began placing advertisements in society pages, The New Yorker, Metropolitan Opera programs, and New York Philharmonic Society programs. The campaign associated the firm with established cultural and social institutions while presenting its services to affluent audiences.
Outcome. The referenced material does not report a quantified campaign outcome.
Brand decisions
2006
Agreed sale to Bank of AmericaM&ABackground
The integration of U.S. Trust into Charles Schwab proved difficult because of differences between a fiduciary private bank and a discount brokerage business.
Action taken
Charles Schwab agreed to sell U.S. Trust to Bank of America for approximately $3.3 billion in cash.
Aftermath
The transaction closed in 2007 and gave Bank of America a larger private banking and high-net-worth wealth management platform.
Purchase price. $3.3 billion in cash (2006 announcement)
2000
Accepted acquisition by Charles SchwabM&ABackground
Charles Schwab sought to broaden its wealth management platform and limit client migration to larger full-service wealth managers.
Action taken
U.S. Trust was sold to Charles Schwab in a stock transaction valued at approximately $2.7 billion.
Aftermath
Cultural and operating differences between the two organizations contributed to Schwab's later decision to sell U.S. Trust.
Acquisition value. $2.7 billion in stock (2000)
1980
Restructured commercial and real-estate activitiesStrategyBackground
U.S. Trust undertook a broader restructuring during the 1980s as it reassessed lending and technology activities.
Action taken
It discontinued commercial, industrial, and real-estate lending activities, sold related portfolios, and launched Financial Technologies International to market software to financial institutions.
Aftermath
The company continued shifting toward trust, investment, and wealth management services.
Value of commercial, industrial, and real-estate portfolios sold. $275 million (1980s)
1970
Reduced international and lower-asset activitiesStrategyBackground
Profit pressure, weak performance, lost pension relationships, and an operational incident involving municipal bond certificates affected the business during the late 1970s.
Action taken
The company stopped international lending, closed its Geneva and London offices, and reduced privileges for clients below approximately $2 million in assets.
Aftermath
The business became more concentrated on domestic trust, investment, and high-net-worth wealth services.
Sources1 sources
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