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Deep roots The oldest chartered bank in the U.S., BankBoston was founded as the Massachusetts Bank in 1784 to compete with British banking firms. The bank was relatively stagnant until the turn of the century, when it merged with the First National Bank of Boston. In the 1980s, Bank of Boston focused its energies on growing throughout New England and became the region's dominant bank. Through a 1996 merger with Massachusetts competitor BayBank, the newly dubbed BankBoston now ranks as the nation's 15th largest bank holding company, with assets in the $75 billion range. Aggressive business strategy Despite its deep history, BankBoston is no stodgy behind-the-times bank. As early as 1917, the company expanded internationally, moving into Brazil and Argentina to finance wool merchants. BankBoston now derives 20 percent of its revenue from those two countries (primarily Brazil), and continues to expand its retail and commercial banking business in South America. Earnings from the region have grown rapidly in recent years, but the financial turmoil in emerging markets worldwide has made BankBoston cheerleaders a bit queasy. Although the bank has remained committed to its Latin American business in spite of shaky markets there, and has not been hurt by currency troubles in Brazil, industry analysts point out that the volatility of business in emerging markets may require ultimately deeper markets than the bank presently sports. We want to be I-bankers, too In midst of the Great Depression, the Glass-Steagall Act was passed, forcing banks to split their commercial and investment banking operations. The most famous split to result from the Glass-Steagall Act was the spin-off of Morgan Stanley from J.P. Morgan. BankBoston, then called the First National Bank of Boston, also spawned a prominent I-bank - First Boston Corp., which became a star M&A player in the 1980s and is now known as Credit Suisse First Boston. In recent years, the banking industry has witnessed a relaxation of the regulations separating commercial banking and investment banking - and the acquisition of a slew of tony investment banks by commercial banking giants. BankBoston gained entree into the potentially super-lucrative I-banking world when in 1998, BankAmerica decided to sell Robertson Stephens, a San Francisco-based firm that it had acquired only months earlier. BankBoston shelled out $800 million for Robertson Stephens, which is a leading investment bank in high tech. The acquisition was made at a high premium, however, and thus far BankBoston has not seen its investment pay off. Acquirer or target? As the banking industry moves forward with the consolidation processes that promises to leave the world with a handful of giant financial services companies, BankBoston looks increasingly like an acquisition target. Such speculation became common especially in late 1998 and early 1999 as the bank suffered trading losses and a plummeting stock price. Not only has the drop in stock price made it easier for competitors to consider buying BankBoston, but it has made it more difficult for BankBoston to consider acquiring other companies, which it will need to continue to do to remain competitive. Industry observers suggest that the bank may pair up with another regional bank like Bank of New York or Mellon Bank in Pittsburgh, but also because of BankBoston's strong Latin American business, it may be attractive to foreign giants like ABN-Amro of the Netherlands. Cognizant of the pressures it is facing, the bank has been pursuing a fine-tuning restructuring (as opposed to a major overhaul) since the summer of 1998, which is designed to make the bank run more efficiently. In July 1998, the Massachusetts Securities Division launched an investigation of sales practices at BankBoston's mutual fund unit. Authorities were looking to determine whether the bank's sales force had been engaging in a practice called switching - generating commissions by pushing customers to sell investments and make new ones. When the inquiry finally ended in March 1999, the bank acknowledged no wrongdoing, but agreed to increase controls on its mutual funds sales force. BankBoston also agreed to bring in an outside monitor to ensure that the new rules are implemented.
BankBoston accepts resumes by fax or by regular mail. The company has a variety of positions open to recent graduates, and most positions require sound computer and quantitative skills. Consult the company's web site, located at www.bkb.com, for contact information, although the site does not offer much in the way of job positions or descriptions. Says one insider about the hiring in his group: "We get resumes from referrals, over the Internet and by regular mail based on newspaper ads. We also have been participating in job fairs and we meet candidates in that setting."
Great diversity For a bank with a long history in a town with a reputation for not being the most progressive of places when it comes to diversity, BankBoston has a surprisingly good record, insiders say. Insiders enjoy working in an environment that includes "people from all walks of life and ethnic backgrounds." As one insider notes: "We have a native Brazilian as our president and COO, and a woman acting as our CFO and treasurer." Another notes that the company "supports and sponsors many diverse groups, including a gay/lesbian resource group, an Asian resource group, an African-American group." Yet another reports that "senior management is very supportive of a diverse culture at the bank." In fact, one of the bank's four core values is diversity. Still traditional It's not as if you won't find elements of stiff culture at BankBoston, though. Says one insider: "You need to wear a suit during the week, but we have casual Fridays." However, the company may be loosening up; in the summer of 1998, for the first time, "the bank had business casual as the dress code for the entire summer." One insider predicts that "this will be the going-forward trend every summer." In fact, one contact describes the culture as "being very professional but also quite relaxed." Good work/life balance for banking Although the banking industry is notorious for wearing employees down with excessive hours, the Bank of Boston is "remarkably flexible when it comes to scheduling around employees' needs." The company does not see "being married to the corporation as a viable long term option." Contacts note that the bank also offers "flex hours, depending on the group you work in, and manager involved." Still, working at the bank is not vacation. Explains one insider: "Like all banks, there is a lot expected of the employees, and usually people put in a lot of hours." The company reportedly pays its employees well in comparison with other major players in the industry. Benefits include "stock option programs, a 401(k) plan, and stock buying programs."
Professional Staffing Mail Stop: MA BOS 01-18-041 100 Federal Street Boston MA 02110 (617) 434-0165 (617) 434-0532
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