Bank of America (BAC 1.71%) has one of the best banking apps, demonstrating its successful shift into fintech as we know it. In this clip from "The Future of Fintech" on Motley Fool Live, recorded on June 16, Motley Fool contributors Jason Hall and Will Healy discuss why the mega bank powerhouse remains a top stock.
Jason Hall: I think this is the biggest fintech in the U.S., really as the way I think about it. This is a company that because it really didn't have a choice, because it has so many branches and it was so overly de-optimized for the way more people were banking. Started really getting leaner and leaner and leaning into better technology. I think it's probably the best app. The best of all of the banking apps. It does everything that most of the fintechs do. We've learned that its ability to take up new customers has been pretty good even as it's continued to shrink its actual physical branch platform. It's continuing to shrink that down. It's continued to acquire customers. The proof of its amazing competitive advantages are in its low cost deposit base. It has so much money. Even as we've seen rates start to creep up, it's the low cost of its deposits and even some of its deposits that are essentially, no costs is enormous. It's enormous and I think that's going to remain a competitive advantage. Even though it's this big trading at the valuation that it's trading at right now, I just think it's wonderful and that's why I ranked it higher than recent Mastercard (MA 0.46%).
Will Healy: Certainly the best mega banks. It's the second biggest holding in Warren Buffett's portfolio next Apple (AAPL 0.96%). The reasons why, Jason pointed out. I ranked it a little bit lower because legacy, I guess, this is the best of the mega banks. But the mega banks really even dragged, kicking and screaming into fintech. They're all brands to get to a degree, but they typically aren't the innovators in it. But I think Bank of America is the best. It's still a relatively slow growth comp compared to some of these fintechs. It ranked a little bit lower on my scale, but if I were to buy a mega bank, it would be this one.
