BofA to End Debit Overdraft Fees

Bank of America announced it will end overdraft fees on debit cards this summer, a move that will cost the bank a large amount of revenue and pressure others to follow suit. Customers who don’t have enough cash in their accounts to make a purchase will simply be declined. More than 60 percent of overdraft fees charged by Bank of America come from debit cards. A new federal law is forcing banks to get permission from customers before allowing overdrafts on debit purchases and ATM withdrawals, fees that earned banks $20 billion last year. Regulators became concerned by reports of people paying as much as $40 for a cup of coffee thanks to overdraft fees, and Congress is considering even more restrictive rules. A 2008 study by the FDIC found that while 75 percent of customers are never charged overdraft fees, a small group—14 percent of cardholders—generates 93 percent of the fees.