Bank of America pledges to halt lending to assault-weapon manufacturers

Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) has pledged to stop lending to companies that provide military-style firearms for civilian use. Vice Chairman Anne Finucane spoke on the matter in an interview with Bloomberg on Tuesday

Bank of America will stop lending to business clients that manufacture military-style weapons for civilian use, becoming the latest U.S. financial institution to break ties with gunmakers following the mass shooting massacre at a Florida high school.

“We want to contribute in any way we can to reduce these mass shootings,” Anne Finucane, vice chairman of the Charlotte, N.C.-based banking giant, said during a Bloomberg TV interview on Tuesday.

Finucane said.The decision by Charlotte-based BofA follows the Feb. 14 mass shooting that killed 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla. Student survivors launched the #NeverAgain movement, which calls for stricter gun laws, along with a nationwide protest called March for Our Lives.

We do have a few manufacturers of military-style firearms” as clients, said Finucane. “We’re in discussions with them. We have let them know … it’s not our intention to underwrite or finance military-style weapons on a go-forward basis.”

The gunmakers’ reaction to the bank’s new policy was “mixed,” she said.

As for financing gun retailers, it becomes more of a gray area. Finucane told Bloomberg halting lending services for the retailers that sell assault weapons becomes more of an issue of civil liberties and the Second Amendment.

The massacre has renewed nationwide calls for tighter gun control, demands that have been opposed by the National Rifle Association and other organizations citing constitutional protection for the right to bear arms.

Citigroup announced new gun-related restrictions on its business partners in March, requiring them to bar firearm sales to customers under age 21, as well as those who have not passed a background check.

The massacre has renewed nationwide calls for tighter gun control, demands that have been opposed by the National Rifle Association and other organizations citing constitutional protection for the right to bear arms.

Citigroup announced new gun-related restrictions on its business partners in March, requiring them to bar firearm sales to customers under age 21, as well as those who have not passed a background check.

News Reporter

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