On September 14, 2008, the Wall Street Journal reported that Bank of America reached an agreement with Merrill Lynch, the third largest investment bank in the United States, and Bank of America would buy Merrill Lynch, with a total transaction amount of about 44 billion US dollars. It is reported that after abandoning the acquisition of Lehman Brothers, the fourth largest investment bank in the United States, Bank of America began the acquisition negotiations with Merrill Lynch. The two sides agreed that Bank of America would buy Merrill Lynch at a price of $29 per share, which was 70% higher than Merrill Lynch's closing price last Friday. It is expected that the two parties will officially announce the news before the opening of the new york stock market on September 15, 2008. Previously, Bank of America had considered buying Lehman Brothers, which was on the verge of bankruptcy, but the relevant negotiations failed to reach an agreement because the Federal Reserve refused to provide financial support for the acquisition. However, Bank of America quickly turned its attention to Merrill Lynch and reached a takeover agreement. Merrill Lynch's share price is under heavy pressure because of the panic caused by the possible bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers. In the week ending September 12, 2008, Merrill Lynch's share price dropped by as much as 36%, and its market value shrank by1500 million USD. Over the past six months, Bear Stearns, Lehman Brothers and Merrill Lynch, the five major investment banks in the United States, have successively fallen into a serious financial crisis, which has aroused people's concern about the American financial industry. At present, the industry is paying close attention to the situation of two other large investment banks, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley.