Bank of America vs Samsung: Founders, CEOs and History
Bank of America was founded in 1904 by Amadeo Peter Giannini and is led by Brian Moynihan. Samsung was founded in 1969 by Lee Byung-chul and is led by Jun Young-hyun and Roh Tae-moon.
Company facts
Bank of America
- Founded
- 1904
- Headquarters
- Charlotte, North Carolina
- Current CEO
- Brian Moynihan
- Employees
- 213,000
Samsung
- Founded
- 1969
- Headquarters
- Suwon, South Korea
- Current CEO
- Jun Young-hyun and Roh Tae-moon
- Employees
- 259,149
Founders
Bank of America
Amadeo Peter Giannini
Bank of America was founded by A. P. Giannini, the San Jose-born son of Italian immigrants. In 1904 he opened the Bank of Italy in a converted saloon in San Francisco's North Beach neighborhood. His aim was unusual for the time: to lend to working people.
Samsung
Lee Byung-chul
Lee Byung-chul founded Samsung Sanghoe in Daegu in 1938, trading dried fish, produce and noodles.
CEOs and their tenures
Bank of America
- Amadeo Peter Giannini1904–1945
Founder and Chairman
Giannini was born in San Jose, California, in 1870 to Italian immigrant parents and sold fruit and vegetables from a horse-drawn wagon before opening the Bank of Italy in San Francisco at the age of 34.
Source - Hugh L. McColl Jr.1998–2001
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
McColl joined the company in 1959 as a management trainee and built NationsBank through interstate acquisitions before its 1998 combination with San Francisco based BankAmerica, which took the Bank of America name and created the first coast-to-coast U.S.
Source - Ken Lewis2001–2009
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Lewis joined the company in 1969 as a credit analyst, ran corporate strategy from 1999, and became chairman and chief executive officer on April 25, 2001 when Hugh McColl retired.
Source - Brian Moynihan2010–present
Chair of the Board and Chief Executive Officer
Moynihan became chief executive officer on January 1, 2010, after running the general counsel, consumer banking and wealth management units, and he also chairs the board.
Source
Samsung
- Jong-Hee Han2022–2025
Vice Chairman and CEO
A longtime TV business leader who helped keep Samsung the top global TV brand. He died suddenly in March 2025 while in office.
Source - Jay Y. Lee2022–present
Executive Chairman
Grandson of the founder and son of Lee Kun-hee. He was convicted in the 2017 bribery case and pardoned in 2022, and became Executive Chairman in October 2022. In 2025 the Supreme Court upheld his acquittal in the separate merger and accounting fraud case.
Source - Jun Young-hyun2024–present
Vice Chairman, Co-Chief Executive Officer, Head of Device Solutions
He implemented a complete overhaul of the semiconductor division's engineering processes, issuing a rare public apology in 2024 for the company's technological delays.
Source - Roh Tae-moon (TM Roh)2025–present
Co-Chief Executive Officer, Head of Device eXperience
As head of the MX (Mobile eXperience) division, he heavily integrated AI features (Galaxy AI) into the S-series flagship phones to combat Apple's dominance in the premium tier.
Source
Timeline: Bank of America and Samsung side by side
1904Bank of America
Bank of Italy Founded
A.P. Giannini founded the Bank of Italy in San Francisco to expand access to banking for immigrants, wage earners, and small merchants.
1906Bank of America
San Francisco Earthquake Response
After the 1906 earthquake, Giannini resumed lending while much of San Francisco's banking system was disrupted. The response turned emergency access to credit into lasting customer trust and became a defining story in the bank's retail identity.
1930Bank of America
Bank of Italy Renamed Bank of America
The Bank of Italy changed its name to Bank of America on November 1, 1930. The rebrand reflected a wider consumer and business ambition beyond the original immigrant-community label.
1938Samsung
Samsung Group begins
Lee Byung-chul founded Samsung as a trading company before later generations expanded the group into electronics and industry.
1958Bank of America
BankAmericard Introduced
Bank of America introduced BankAmericard in 1958, a revolving-credit card that later became part of the Visa system. The product tied the bank to modern consumer credit, merchant acceptance, and payment-network economics.
1969Samsung
Samsung Electronics established
Samsung Electronics Industry Co. Ltd. was established as the group entered electronics manufacturing.
1977Samsung
Korea Semiconductor acquired
Samsung acquired Korea Semiconductor, a key step toward memory and component manufacturing leadership.
1993Samsung
New Management initiative
Lee Kun-hee launched the New Management push to raise quality, design, and global competitiveness.
1998Bank of America
NationsBank and BankAmerica Merge
The 1998 merger of Charlotte-based NationsBank and San Francisco's BankAmerica created the first coast-to-coast U.S. bank under the Bank of America name. It also shifted the modern company's headquarters center to Charlotte.
2006Bank of America
MBNA Merger Completed
The MBNA merger expanded the card business to more than 40M active accounts and nearly $140B in managed balances, according to the company's January 2006 release. That size made cards a more important part of consumer banking revenue and risk.
2008Bank of America
Countrywide Acquisition Approved
The Federal Reserve approved Bank of America's acquisition of Countrywide in June 2008. The deal added mortgage scale but later became a costly warning about buying distressed loan portfolios during a housing crisis.
2008Bank of America
Merrill Lynch Acquisition Approved
The Federal Reserve approved the acquisition of Merrill Lynch in November 2008. Although the integration was controversial, Merrill became central to the company's wealth-management and investment-banking fee base.
2014Bank of America
Mortgage Settlements With the Justice Department and FHFA
Bank of America agreed in August 2014 to a $16.65B settlement with the Justice Department over mortgage claims tied to Countrywide and Merrill Lynch, following a March 2014 FHFA agreement with an aggregate payment of about $9.33B.
2017Samsung
Harman acquisition closes
Samsung completed the Harman acquisition, expanding into connected car systems and premium audio.
2018Bank of America
Erica Launched
Bank of America launched Erica in 2018 as an AI-enabled virtual assistant inside digital banking. The launch mattered because customer service, insights, and routine account tasks were moving from branches and call centers into mobile channels.
2022Samsung
Jong-Hee Han becomes CEO
Jong-Hee Han became CEO of Samsung Electronics Co. in 2022. A longtime TV business leader who helped keep Samsung the top global TV brand.
2023Bank of America
CFPB and OCC Orders on Fees, Rewards and Accounts
In July 2023 the CFPB ordered Bank of America to pay more than $100M to customers for repeat non-sufficient-funds fees, withheld credit card rewards and unauthorized accounts, plus $90M in CFPB penalties, and the OCC added a $60M penalty.
2024Samsung
Jun Young-hyun becomes CEO
Jun Young-hyun became CEO of Samsung Electronics Co. in 2024. Head of the semiconductor (Device Solutions) division and memory business; sole CEO for part of 2025 after Han Jong-hee's death, then co-CEO with TM Roh from November 2025.
2025Bank of America
$113.1B FY2025 Revenue
The company reported $113.1B in total revenue net of interest expense and $30.5B in net income for FY2025. The result showed the combined scale of deposits, wealth management, cards, payments, global banking, and markets.
2025Bank of America
Co-Presidents Named
On September 12, 2025 Bank of America named Dean Athanasia and Jim DeMare Co-Presidents and gave Chief Financial Officer Alastair Borthwick the added title of executive vice president.
2025Samsung
TM Roh joins Young Hyun Jun as co-CEO
Samsung named TM Roh Head of Device eXperience and CEO, joining Young Hyun Jun as co-CEO.
2025Samsung
Annual revenue reaches ~$237B (KRW 333.6T)
Samsung Electronics reported ~$237 billion (KRW 333.6 trillion) in 2025 annual revenue and ~$31 billion (KRW 43.6 trillion) in operating profit.
2025Samsung
Roh Tae-moon (TM Roh) becomes CEO
Roh Tae-moon (TM Roh) became CEO of Samsung Electronics Co. in 2025. Longtime head of the mobile business.
Acquisitions
Bank of America
- Countrywide Financial2008$4B
- Merrill Lynch2008$50B
- LaSalle Bank2007$21B
- MBNA2006$35B
- FleetBoston Financial2004$47B
- BankAmerica / NationsBank merger1998$43B
Samsung
- FlaktGroup2025$1.7B
- Xealth2025Undisclosed
- Harman International2017$8B
- SmartThings2014$200M
Questions about Bank of America vs Samsung
Who is the CEO of Bank of America Corporation and Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.?
Bank of America Corporation is led by Brian Moynihan and Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is led by Jun Young-hyun and Roh Tae-moon. Both serve as the top executive responsible for the company's strategy, operations, and financial performance.
When was Bank of America Corporation founded vs Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.?
Bank of America Corporation was founded in 1904 — 65 years before Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., which was founded in 1969. Bank of America Corporation's longer operating history gives it a deeper track record but also potentially more institutional inertia compared to the younger Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd..
How many employees does Bank of America Corporation have compared to Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.?
Bank of America Corporation employs approximately 213,000 people, while Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. employs approximately 259,149. Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. has the larger workforce at 259,149 employees, compared to Bank of America Corporation's 213,000. A higher headcount does not necessarily imply greater efficiency — it often reflects differences in business model (e.g., manufacturing vs. software).
Where are Bank of America Corporation and Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. headquartered?
Bank of America Corporation is headquartered in United States and Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is headquartered in South Korea. Their different home markets mean they may face different regulatory frameworks, tax regimes, and currency exposure.
Who founded Bank of America Corporation and Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.?
Bank of America Corporation was founded by Amadeo Peter Giannini. Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. was founded by Lee Byung-chul.
Which company has a longer operating history — Bank of America Corporation or Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.?
Bank of America Corporation has been operating for approximately 122 years, making it the more established of the two companies. Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. has been in operation for around 57 years. A longer operating history often signals greater institutional resilience and brand recognition, though it can also mean slower adaptation to new market conditions.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the Bank of America vs Samsung overview