<P> In April 2014, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ordered Bank of America to provide and estimated $727 million in relief to consumers harmed by practices related to credit card add - on products . According to the Bureau, roughly 1.4 million customers were affected by deceptive marketing of add - on products and 1.9 million customers were illegally charged for credit monitoring and reporting services they were not receiving . The deceptive marketing misconduct involved telemarketing scripts containing misstatements and off - script sales pitches made by telemarketers that were misleading and omitted pertinent information . The unfair billing practices involved billing customers for privacy related products without having the authorization necessary to perform the credit monitoring and credit report retrieval services . As a result, the company billed customers for services they did not receive, unfairly charged consumers for interest and fees, illegally charged approximately 1.9 million accounts, and failed to provide the product benefit . </P> <P> A $7.5 million settlement was reached in April 2014 with former chief financial officer for Bank of America, Joe L. Price, over allegations that the bank's management withheld material information related to its 2008 merger with Merrill Lynch . In August 2014, the United States Department of Justice and the bank agreed to a $16.65 billion agreement over the sale of risky, mortgage - backed securities before the Great Recession; the loans behind the securities were transferred to the company when it acquired banks such as Merrill Lynch and Countrywide in 2008 . As a whole, the three firms provided $965 billion of mortgage - backed securities from 2004--2008 . The settlement was structured to give $7 billion in consumer relief and $9.65 billion in penalty payments to the federal government and state governments; California, for instance, received $300 million to recompense public pension funds . The settlement was the largest in United States history between a single company and the federal government . </P> <P> A lawsuit has been filed against Bank of America by a former senior executive, Omeed Malik, who was accused of sexual harassment . Malik filed a defamation claim against the bank and is seeking damages of more than $100 million . </P> <P> Parmalat SpA is a multinational Italian dairy and food corporation . Following Parmalat's 2003 bankruptcy, the company sued Bank of America for $10 billion, alleging the bank profited from its knowledge of Parmalat's financial difficulties . The parties announced a settlement in July 2009, resulting in Bank of America paying Parmalat $98.5 million in October 2009 . In a related case, on April 18, 2011, an Italian court acquitted Bank of America and three other large banks, along with their employees, of charges they assisted Parmalat in concealing its fraud, and of lacking sufficient internal controls to prevent such frauds . Prosecutors did not immediately say whether they would appeal the rulings . In Parma, the banks were still charged with covering up the fraud . </P>

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