Amended - Fitch Assigns Deposit Rtgs to Bank of Am - RI; W/Ds Merrill Lynch Bank & Trust Rtgs

CHICAGO, Nov 05, 2009 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- (This is an amendment to the release of Nov. 2, 2009. It corrects the long-term deposit rating of Bank of America Rhode Island N.A. to `AA-' from `A+' and corrects the withdrawn rating of Merrill Lynch Bank & Trust Co. FSB long-term deposits to `AA-' from `A+'.) Bank of America Corporation (BAC) has undertaken a reorganization of some of its bank subsidiaries. Bank of America Rhode Island N.A. (BANA-RI) has begun to hold deposits of external customers. At the same time, Merrill Lynch Bank & Trust Co.

FSB (ML-FSB) has been merged into Bank of America N.A.

As a result of the decision to hold deposits at BANA-RI, Fitch has affirmed all existing ratings and the Stable Outlook, and has also assigned long-term and short-term deposit ratings to this subsidiary. Ratings of BANA-RI reflect its position as an operating entity in the BAC family. The long-term and short-term Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) and the deposit and support floor/support ratings all reflect Fitch's view that there is an extremely high probability that this entity, along with other core BAC subsidiaries, would receive support in a crisis scenario. The Stable Rating Outlook is also derived from government support. BANA-RI's individual rating is linked to that of BAC and reflects the consolidated company's weakened earnings and asset quality profile.

Separately, Fitch has withdrawn all issue and issuer ratings of ML-FSB, since this company no longer exists as a separate entity.

Fitch has assigned the following ratings: Bank of America Rhode Island, N.A.

--Long-term deposits `AA-'; --Short-term deposits `F1+'.

Fitch has affirmed the following ratings with a Stable Outlook: Bank of America Rhode Island, N.A.

--Long-term IDR at `A+'; --Short-term IDR at `F1+'; --Individual at `D'; --Support at `1'; --Support Floor at `A+'.

Fitch has withdrawn the following ratings: Merrill Lynch Bank & Trust Co. FSB --Long-term IDR `A+'; --Short-term IDR `F1+'; --Long-term deposits `AA-'; --Short-term deposits `F1+'; --Individual `D'; --Support `1'; --Support Floor `A+'.

Additional information is available at www.fitchratings.com.

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SOURCE: Fitch Ratings CONTACT: Fitch Ratings David Spring, [phone] (Chicago) Sharon Haas, [phone] (New York) Brian Bertsch, [phone] (Media Relations, New York) [e-mail] Copyright Business Wire 2009 -0- KEYWORD: United States

North America

New York INDUSTRY KEYWORD: Professional Services

Finance SUBJECT CODE: Bond/Stock Rating