From the November 28th print edition of BusinessWeek (“Bank Notes: Why BofA isn’t handing out toasters,” p. 16):

Is Bank of America intentionally trying to chase off depositors? That’s what some analysts and rival bankers are speculating, given the bank’s decision to let the rates it pays on certificates of deposits and money-market accounts suddenly fall way below those of other banks. . . .

The cuts may be BofA’s way of complying with a congressional law that forbids banks to amass more than 10% of the nation’s deposits through an acquisition, says Richard Bove, a banking analyst at Punk Ziegel. He notes that BofA’s pending $35 billion deal for MBNA would put it ever so slightly over that 10% cap. Bove suspects BofA began cutting rates in hopes that depositors would defect in time for the regulatory review.

The article ends with “However, a BofA spokesman denies any effort to drive off customers.”