Millions Turned to Online Banking in 2003

Millions Turned to Online Banking in 2003
Bank of America becomes first to cross 7 million subscriber milestone; Started
the year with 4.7 million 


CHARLOTTE, N.C., Dec. 18  /PRNewswire/ -- In another indication of how online
banking grew in 2003, Bank of America announced today that it has become the
first financial services company with 7 million subscribers to its free online
banking service, up from 4.7 million at the beginning of the year.

The number of customers paying their bills online increased dramatically during
the year as well. Bank of America now has 3 million bill payers, compared to 1.8
million at the beginning of 2003 - the most in the industry.

Sanjay Gupta, e-Commerce executive at Bank of America, said there are several
reasons for the rapid growth: customers are becoming more comfortable handling
their finances online, they're telling others how easy it is, and they're using
enhancements that allow them to do more online. For example:

   - Electronic statements Customers can stop getting checking account
     statements through the mail and see 12 months of statements online
     instead.
   - Online check images Customers can see electronic images of the front
     and back of checks for free, 24 hours a day.
   - A Bill Pay hub page Customers can see the functions they use most on
     one page: scheduling payments, reviewing payments and viewing
     electronic versions of paper bills. Bill payments are protected from
     fraud under the bank's zero liability guarantee.
   - Electronic bills Customers can get electronic copies of bills from more
     than 275 billers, including utility companies, credit card companies
     and others.
   - Same-day transactions Customers can see details of pending transactions
     on the same day they were made.



"During the year, we've seen how customers who don't consider themselves very
'tech-savvy' have become comfortable with online banking," Gupta said. "We
expect that trend to continue, as customers find that they can do more of their
banking online, 24 hours a day. And as they tell us what they want, we
deliver."

Even without logging in to accounts, customers and non-customers can get other
information at bankofamerica.com , including mortgage tools and deposit
applications, as well as many product details in Spanish.

Bank of America has won praise from the industry for its online banking and bill
payment. For the second year in a row, Global Finance magazine recognized Bank
of America as having the best consumer Internet bank site in the world. Jupiter
Research ranked Bank of America No. 1 in its CORE rankings and Vividence ranked
bankofamerica.com No. 1 in experience for customers and prospective customers.

Bank of America provides online bill payment services through CheckFree
Corporation (NASDAQ:CKFR). CheckFree provides electronic commerce services and
products.

  To sign up for Online Banking, go to http://www.bankofamerica.com/ .

  About us


Bank of America is a leading provider of online financial services, and its
online site, http://www.bankofamerica.com/ , has received widespread
recognition. Global Finance named it the best consumer Internet bank site in the
world; Jupiter Research ranked Bank of America No. 1 in its CORE rankings;
Vividence ranked bankofamerica.com No. 1 in experience for customers and
prospective customers; Forbes ranked the site among the Best of the Web; and
Nielsen NetRatings called it the Top Financial Web site, based on traffic and
the length of time customers spend on the site. comScore Networks, Inc. called
Bank of America "the clear leader" in the rate of adoption of online bill
payment and the leader of the industry based on overall number of active online
customers. Bank of America stock (ticker: BAC) is listed on the New York,
Pacific and London stock exchanges.

http://www.bankofamerica.com/ 

DATASOURCE: Bank of America Corporation



CONTACT:  Betty Riess of Bank of America, [phone], or





Web site:  http://www.bankofamerica.com/ 




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