Bank of America is a multinational bank and financial services company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. It used to be one of several major financiers of private prison and immigrant detention companies, having provided revolving lines of credit, term loans, and bond underwriting services to CoreCivic and GEO Group. In 2019, it announced, along with several other major financial institutions, that it would exit the private prison industry.
In 2022, CoreCivic signed a new credit agreement, replacing a 2018 $1 billion credit facility. Bank of America was part of the 2018 agreement, having served as the administrative agent and provided a $112 million revolving line of credit and a $28 million term loan. Unlike in previous years, public disclosures regarding the 2022 agreement only named the administrative agent, Alter Domus. While other lenders are also involved, they were not named. Therefore, it cannot be verified whether Bank of America is still involved.
Also in 2022, GEO Group entered into a new credit agreement, replacing a previous agreement that consisted of a $900 million revolving line of credit and a $792 million term loan. Bank of America was part of the previous agreement, having provided an undisclosed amount of money to the deal. Unlike in previous years, public disclosures regarding the 2022 agreement only named the administrative agent, Alter Domus. While other lenders are also involved, they were not named. Therefore, it cannot be verified whether Bank of America is still involved.
The bank's known past involvement includes:
- In April 2013, CoreCivic issued two sets of bonds—one set totaling $325 million, with a maturity date of 2020, and the other set totaling $350 million, with a maturity date of 2023. As part of a syndicate of banks, Bank of America subsidiary Merrill Lynch (now Merrill) underwrote undisclosed proportions of both sets of bonds.
- In September 2014, GEO Group issued $250 million of bonds, with a maturity date of 2024. As part of a syndicate of banks, Merrill Lynch underwrote $48.1 million worth of these bonds.
- In September 2015, CoreCivic issued $250 million of bonds, with a maturity date of 2022. As part of a syndicate of banks, Merrill Lynch underwrote $40 million worth of these bonds.
- In April 2016, GEO Group issued $350 million worth of bonds, with a maturity date of 2026. As part of a syndicate of banks, Merrill Lynch underwrote $49 million worth of these bonds.
- In October 2017, CoreCivic issued $250 million of bonds, with a maturity date of 2027. As part of a syndicate of banks, Merrill Lynch underwrote an undisclosed proportion of these bonds.
In May 2019, Bank of America was exposed as the main backer of Caliburn International (now Acuity International), whose subsidiary Comprehensive Health Services operated the largest migrant youth detention center in the United States. The bank helped finance a $455 million credit agreement with the company and was listed as the underwriter of its IPO, which ultimately did not materialize.
In addition to financing private prison companies, Bank of America previously provided prisons with release cards: prepaid debit cards that formerly incarcerated individuals use to access remaining funds sent by loved ones or earned through prison labor. Unlike consumer credit cards, release cards subject cardholders to exorbitant transaction and maintenance fees and are "completely unregulated." Bank of America reportedly ended its prison release card operations some years ago.
Involvement in Cop City
Bank of America and its subsidiary Merrill are among the corporate backers of the Atlanta Police Foundation (APF), the nonprofit arm of the Atlanta Police Department, which, together with the City of Atlanta, is constructing a militarized police training compound—known as Cop City—on protected forest land. As of August 2023, President and Co-head of Merrill Wealth Management, Eric Schimpf, serves on the APF's Board of Trustees. In 2022, Bank of America donated at least $120,000 to the APF for the operation of one of its At-Promise "youth crime diversion" facilities.
Other Controversies
As of 2018, Bank of America was one of the largest commercial customers of G4S, a private prison operator and subsidiary of Allied Universal, the world's largest private security company. Under a contract that ended in 2020, G4S provided over 3,000 Bank of America branches with security guards, CCTV systems, and other security products and services.
- On April 26, 2017, University of Wisconsin-Madison students passed a resolution to call for the university's divestment from private prisons and corporations that build border walls, naming Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, General Dynamics, Northrop Grumman, Honeywell, L-3 Communications, Boeing, Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase, BNP Paribas, Suntrust, US Bank Corp., and Wells Fargo.