Double blow to banking giant: historic fine and disappointing earnings

Bank of America has been hit with an unprecedented fine of over $1.2 billion from the U.S. Treasury Department for failures in anti-money laundering compliance and late reporting of suspicious transactions. At the same time, the bank reported disappointing quarterly results, with earnings per share of $0.91 versus a forecast of $1.10, and revenue of $30 billion below expectations. The bank's stock has fallen to a yearly low.

Bank of America has suffered a double blow: a historic fine of over $1.2 billion from the U.S. Treasury Department, and disappointing quarterly results that missed analyst expectations. The fine, the largest ever imposed by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), was levied by FinCEN for three key failures: a deficient anti-money laundering compliance program, inadequate oversight of foreign banks, and late reporting of suspicious transactions totaling more than $5 billion. The bank admitted to knowingly violating the Bank Secrecy Act of 1970. In its quarterly report, earnings per share came in at $0.91, including the impact of the fine, versus a forecast of $1.10. Excluding one-time effects, adjusted earnings were $1.08 per share, slightly below expectations. Revenue totaled $30 billion against a forecast of $30.58 billion. The bank's stock fell more than 4% in pre-market trading in New York, completing a decline of over 20% from its recent peak and hitting a yearly low. The fine is the third-largest in the history of the U.S. Treasury Department, following fines on Binance and TD Bank.