Bank of America's Countrywide Tab Signed by Taxpayers

Bloomberg (06/25/08); Ivry, Bob; Mildenberg, David
Millions of U.S. taxpayers could pay for Bank of America's $3 billion acquisition of Countrywide Financial, and the tax write-offs could explain why the bank remains committed to the deal. Bank of America could receive a tax benefit of about $5 billion of Countrywide's losses over 20 years, and former Lehman Brothers Holdings managing director Robert Willens explains that the losses reduce the effective cost of the deal. "It's entirely possible that the entire equity purchase price could be financed by tax savings," he adds. Countrywide shareholders are expected to vote on the sale on June 25.