bank of america

Big banks risk losing as much as $185 billion in the next 12 months as account holders say no to being nickeled and dimed, according to a new report

More than 13 million Bank of America debit-card customers could see some repayment for excessive overdraft fees the bank charged them over the course of a decade. A federal judge has approved a $410 million settlement to compensate customers who were charged fees as a result of the bank posting transactions from highest to lowest dollar amount, rather than in the order they occurred.

Borrowers looking to capitalize on historically low interest rates to refinance or buy homes are discovering those rates are often out of reach -- and not necessarily because of their credit scores. Understaffed banks, rigid rules, and low-ball appraisals are costing customers the best deals.

Did Bank Transfer Day work? Over the weekend, many Americans came out to protest big banks, and while there's no hard data yet to gauge the day's impact, credit unions around the country are reporting a continuing upsurge in interest. And the protests don't appear to be fading.

On Saturday, tens of thousands will march, protest and move their money out of big banks. But plenty of Americans haven't waited for Bank Transfer Day. For Frank Sheldon of Seattle, his journey to a credit union started in 2008 when his old bank was absorbed by J.P. Morgan Chase.

Bank of America did the right thing this week, nixing its notorious $5 a month debit card fee before it began. But B of A can't win, and even now, financial journalists are wondering how it will find ways to nickel and dime its way back from this week's fee retreat at the expense of its customers.

Is Occupy Wall Street working? Bank of America announced on Tuesday that it's dropping its plan to charge a $5 monthly fee to customers who use debit cards for purchases. "We have listened to our customers very closely over the last few weeks" said a top bank official, explaining the reversal.

Between the outcry over Bank of America's new fees and the approach of "Bank Transfer Day," low-profile credit unions have been receiving a lot of attention. But the publicity has exposed a number of commonly held false beliefs about credit unions. Let's debunk a few of the most common.

The financial world's fee fever may have abated -- for now. Several big and medium-sized banks say they're not implementing fees for debit card use anytime soon. But with bank revenues slipping, they do need to act, and more are considering cost cuts to repair their bottom lines.