Bank of America: Fed approves higher dividend

BANK of America would raise its quarterly dividend for the first time in seven years after the Federal Reserve approved its updated capital plan, the second-largest US bank said yesterday. Bank of America’s shares rose as much as 2.4 percent after saying it would increase its quarterly dividend to 5 US cents (R0.53) a share from 1c. The updated capital plan included an increase in common stock dividend but no share repurchases. The bank withdrew its previous capital plan in April after it found errors that reduced a key capital level. The accounting error stemmed from Merrill Lynch’s debt, which Bank of America assumed after it bought the brokerage during the financial crisis. – Reuters