I Can Trade Online Free From Bank of America, Right????

Question

I have about $20,000 in CD in Bank of America. Can I open an account for trading stocks free?

Answer 1

Read the fine print...

Offer available with an individual or joint Banc of America Investment Services, Inc. (BAI) Self-Directed Brokerage account. If you have a combined total of $25,000 or more in your deposit accounts at Bank of America N.A., BAI waives its commission fee for as many as 30 online equity trades each month. When you make an online equity trade, BAI determines whether you meet the balance requirement to qualify that trade for the commission fee waiver. BAI adds the average collected balances in your checking and savings accounts as of the prior month to the balances in your CD and FDIC-insured IRA accounts as of the prior business day. If this calculation reflects a combined total of less than $25,000, BAI then makes a second calculation to see if the trade qualifies by adding the balances in your checking, savings, CD and FDIC-insured IRA accounts as of the prior business day. Offer applies only to online equity trades, including stock and exchange traded fund (ETF) trades. Standard commission fees for online equity trades range from $5 to $14 depending on your relationship with Bank of America and apply when the balance requirement is not met, or when you exceed 30 qualifying trades.

To determine the 30 trade limit, BAI adds the qualifying trades in your individual accounts and in each joint account for which you are the primary account owner. Deposit accounts with the same social security number as the social security number(s) on the Self-Directed Brokerage account are systematically included in the balance determination. Deposit accounts maintained with the Military Bank of Bank of America, N.A. are not systematically included in the balance determination.

Other standard brokerage fees associated with, but not limited to, margin transactions, option trading, special stock registration/gifting, account transfer and processing, account maintenance, research request, termination and IRA custodial accounts apply. Standard deposit fees apply to deposit accounts.

Relationship requirements and pricing are subject to change. Offer does not apply to Business/Corporate Accounts, Investment Club Accounts, Partnership Accounts and certain fiduciary accounts held at BAI. See www.bankofamerica.com/invest for further details.

Private Bank clients are automatically eligible for this 30 trade offer.

Money market mutual funds and FDIC accounts offer different rates, returns and yields so that transferring funds from a money market mutual fund to a deposit account may lead to a lower rate of return.
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Answer 2

If I recall correctly, the minimum is $25,000. Check with them to make sure. If you do meet the minimum, then I believe that is the case up to a certain point. I understand they have a limit on the number of free trades per month.