There are three main national banks that have locations throughout the entire United States. These three banks are Bank of America, Citi and Chase bank. They each have thousands of locations and several sub-groups such as mortgage and loan companies, credit-card companies and investment firms.
Geography
Bank of America has the most extensive branch locations list; it has over 6,100 locations throughout the United States. There are even more ATM locations for Bank of America. Chase bank has only 3,000 locations throughout the United States. Citi has over 3,000 locations in the United States, with an additional 2,000 in other countries. These three national banks have locations in every state.
Size
Citi bank produces the most income of all the major three national banks, but is only the second-largest bank in the U.S. Bank of America is the largest bank, and it has also expanded, absorbing Merrill Lynch, which has increased their international business and investment banking. Chase bank is the third largest bank in the United States. A lot of their business focuses on the auto industry, credit cards and loans. This is one of the reasons why Chase is the smallest, but it continues to grow at a rapid pace.
Benefits
There are a lot of benefits in using a national bank. One of the greatest benefits is the benefit of convenience. Wherever you go in the United States, and often outside it, you will be able to find a banking location with a national bank. It is easiest to find these bank locations in heavily populated areas. The locations for each of these banks are greatest in the eastern United States, southern United States and along the West Coast.
Warning
There are a few drawbacks to using a national bank as well. The main disadvantage is the possibility of monopoly. If all of the smaller banks fail or get absorbed by the national banks, then the national banks will be able to choose whatever rates, fees and charges they want to. This can be bad for the customer because with nowhere else to go, there is no choice but to accept the changes.
Potential
With online banking becoming more popular, it has become less necessary for a bank to have as many branch locations. Most banking can be done online. This means that these national banks can be accessed from anywhere in the world.
