Dive Brief:

• Profit at Bank of America dropped 12% in 2022’s first quarter, to $7.07 billion compared with $8.05 billion over the first three months of last year, the bank reported Monday.
• The bank’s performance ran counter to its competitors in a couple of areas. Mortgage originations increased 7%, while JPMorgan Chase saw a 37% dip in that category and Wells Fargo saw a 27% decline, according to The Wall Street Journal.
• While the bank saw a 35% drop in investment banking revenue — JPMorgan, by comparison, experienced a 28% dip — Bank of America’s equity trading revenue surged 9.5%, topping $2 billion for the first time, Bloomberg reported. "Despite the market turmoil, we had zero days of trading losses," CEO Brian Moynihan told investors Monday, according to the wire service.

Dive Insight:

Bank of America set aside just $30 million to counter potential credit losses, The New York Times reported — far less than the likes of Citi or JPMorgan, which hold greater exposure to Russia.  

"[Russia] has never been a big part of our business … we’re helping clients unwind contracts there," Bank of America CFO Alastair Borthwick said Monday, according to The Wall Street Journal. The bank’s total Russia exposure encompasses roughly $700 million, the outlet reported.

Meanwhile, the bank released $362 million in loan-loss reserves it amassed as the COVID-19 pandemic ramped up.

That comes amid a 10% increase in outstanding loans and leases for the bank. Bank of America’s commercial loans ticked up 13%, while consumer loans rose 6%.

"Going forward, and with the forward curve expectation of rising interest rates, we anticipate realizing more of the benefit of our deposit franchise," Borthwick said Monday in a statement.

Noninterest income, which includes fees, dipped 8% in the final quarter before Bank of America shaves its overdraft fee. The drop from $35 to $10 per charge is expected to take effect in May.

The bank’s net interest income, meanwhile, jumped 13%, while its revenue ticked up 2% from 2021’s first quarter, to $23.23 billion.

Bank of America saw double-digit percentage-point declines in a handful of areas where its competitors also struggled during the quarter. A 75% slump in equities underwriting drove investment banking fees down 33%. And while equity trading revenue may have had an up quarter, fixed-income trading fell by 19%.

It appears, though, that speculation of a spike in expenses — as banks vie to retain talent — may have been overblown. Total expenses at Bank of America saw just a 1% increase. By comparison, JPMorgan’s expenses rose 2%. Citi saw a 15% jump but has been working for more than a year to revamp its technology to align with a pair of 2020 consent orders.