NEW YORK, Dec 5: Bank of America’s acquisition of Merrill Lynch won approval from shareholders of both firms on Friday, marking the final chapter for the Wall Street icon battered by the housing and credit crisis.

Approval by Merrill shareholders was followed hours later by a positive vote from Bank of America stock owners, setting the stage for closing of the deal, which has been cleared by US and European antitrust regulators.

The all-stock acquisition, initially valued at $50 billion when it was announced on Sept 15, now carries a value of $19.7 billion, due to the slide in the price of Bank of America shares.

“When this transaction closes, Bank of America will have the premier financial services franchise anchored by the cornerstone relationship products and services of deposits, credit and debit cards, mortgages and wealth management,” said Bank of America chairman and chief executive Kenneth Lewis.

“With Merrill Lynch, we also will significantly add to our global footprint in several businesses, including investment banking and sales and trading, enabling us to deepen existing client relationships and create greater opportunity to establish new ones.”—AFP