BofA Yanks Most Teller Machines From Malls, Gas Stations

Citigroup Inc. (C) (C), the third-biggest lender by assets, had about 10,000 branded ATMs, said spokesman Sean Kevelighan. Wells Fargo & Co (WFC) (WFC), the No. 4 lender by assets and operator of the most branches, had about 12,200 ATMs, according to Richele Messick, a company spokeswoman.

ATMs have gained in importance as more than half of Bank of America check deposits made at branches now involve the devices, Pace said. The company may close 750 branches over the next few years to focus on "high-density" areas that offer the best returns, Moynihan said in April.

The CEO has said that his strategy is to sell more services to Bank of America's 8 million preferred clients, who had about three-quarters of retail deposits and are 1.5 times as profitable as the lower-tier group. The bank gives incentives by removing service fees on checking accounts for those who use its credit card, have a mortgage or Merrill Lynch brokerage account.

Moynihan had touted the reach of his ATM network last year when saying why the proposed debit fee was fair for those with less deposits or who have mortgages or credit-cards with other lenders. He dropped the fee in November after a public backlash.

"The issue is when people split their relationship and use our convenience and our access and our 18,000 ATMs and our no- foreign ATM fees and our online banking product and all that, and yet have their relationship elsewhere," Moynihan said in October. "That is tough for us to afford to provide."

To contact the reporters on this story: Hugh Son in New York at hson1@bloomberg.net; Zachary Tracer in New York at ztracer1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: David Scheer at dscheer@bloomberg.net; Dan Kraut at dkraut2@bloomberg.net