Berkshire Hathaway Buying 700M Shares In Bank of America

NEW YORK, NY — Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway is buying 700 million shares in Bank of America, making Buffett the largest shareholder in two of the nation's largest banks.

Berkshire said Friday that it will convert warrants purchased in Bank of America back in 2011, when the bank was struggling following the financial crisis, into common shares in the bank. The 700 million-share stake in the bank will make Berkshire the largest shareholder in Bank of America, exceeding mutual fund giant Vanguard.

Buffett is also the largest shareholder in Wells Fargo. (For more local news, click here to sign up for real-time news alerts. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app.)

Buffett said in his annual shareholder letter that he would convert his warrants in Bank of America to common stock if the bank were ever to raise its annual dividend above 44 cents a share, which the bank did this week.

By Ken Sweet, AP Business Writer

Photo credit:John Peterson and Chuck Burton, Associated Press