What was Bank of America originally established as?

Bank of America was originally established as the Bank of Italy in 1904 in San Francisco, California. The bank was founded by Amadeo Giannini, an Italian-American entrepreneur, with the purpose of offering financial services to immigrants, particularly Italian Americans, who faced difficulties in accessing credit from other institutions due to discrimination. Giannini's vision was to provide banking services to the working class and support their entrepreneurial ventures. Over time, the Bank of Italy grew and expanded its services, eventually becoming Bank of America in 1930 to reflect its broader customer base beyond the Italian community. The name change also aimed to reflect the bank's ambition to become a national financial institution.