Enter Bank of America: exit Citigroup

Bank of America announced in June its intention of investing $3 billion for a 9% stake in China Construction Bank, China's second-biggest state lender, as part of a strategic move into the country. In a deal that took the market by surprise, Bank of America stated that it had entered into agreements with CCB to provide strategic assistance in relation to, inter alia, corporate governance, risk management, credit cards, consumer banking and treasury services. Bank of America is presumably salivating over the prospect of CCB's 136 million retail accounts and 14,500 branches.