Filed Pursuant to Rule 424(b)(2)

Registration No. 333-202354

This pricing supplement, which is not complete and may be changed, relates to an effective Registration Statement under the Securities Act of 1933. This pricing supplement and the accompanying prospectus supplement and prospectus are not an offer to sell these notes in any country or jurisdiction where such an offer would not be permitted.

 

 

Pricing Supplement No. ___
Preliminary Pricing Supplement - Subject to Completion
(To Prospectus dated May 1, 2015

and Series M Prospectus Supplement dated February 23, 2017)

August 16, 2017

$___________

Fixed to Floating Rate Notes with a Maximum Interest Rate, due August [28], 2027

 

·

The notes are senior unsecured debt securities issued by Bank of America Corporation (“BAC”). All payments and the return of the principal amount on the notes are subject to our credit risk.

·

The notes will mature on August [28], 2027. At maturity, you will receive a cash payment equal to 100% of the principal amount of your notes, plus any accrued and unpaid interest.

·

Interest will be paid on February [28], May [28], August [28], and November [28] of each year, beginning on November [28], 2017, and with the final interest payment occurring on the maturity date.

·

From, and including, the issue date to, but excluding, August [28], 2019, the notes will bear interest at the fixed rate of 3.50% per annum.

·

From, and including, August [28], 2019, to, but excluding, the maturity date (the “Floating Rate Period”), the notes will bear interest at a per annum floating rate equal to 3-month U.S. dollar LIBOR plus the Spread (as defined below). However, the maximum rate of interest payable on the notes during the Floating Rate Period (the “Cap”) is 6.00% per annum.

·

The “Spread” will be 1.00%.

·

We will not have the option to redeem the notes prior to maturity.

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The notes are issued in minimum denominations of $1,000 and whole multiples of $1,000.

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The notes will not be listed on any securities exchange.

·

The CUSIP number for the notes is 06048WUS7.

The notes:

Are Not FDIC Insured

Are Not Bank Guaranteed

May Lose Value

 

 

	Per Note		Total
Public Offering Price	100.00%		$
Underwriting Discount	1.25%*		$
Proceeds (before expenses) to BAC	98.75%		$

* We or one of our affiliates may pay varying selling concessions of up to 1.25% in connection with the distribution of the notes to other registered broker-dealers.

The notes are unsecured and are not savings accounts, deposits, or other obligations of a bank. The notes are not guaranteed by Bank of America, N.A. or any other bank, are not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other governmental agency, and involve investment risks. Potential purchasers of the notes should consider the information in “Risk Factors” beginning on page PS-4 of this pricing supplement, page S-5 of the attached prospectus supplement, and page 9 of the attached prospectus.

None of the Securities and Exchange Commission, any state securities commission, or any other regulatory body has approved or disapproved of these notes or passed upon the adequacy or accuracy of this pricing supplement, the accompanying prospectus supplement, or the accompanying prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

We will deliver the notes in book-entry form only through The Depository Trust Company on or about August [28], 2017 against payment in immediately available funds.

Series M MTN prospectus supplement dated February 23, 2017

and prospectus dated May 1, 2015

BofA Merrill Lynch

 

 

RISK FACTORS

Your investment in the notes entails significant risks, many of which differ from those of a conventional security. Your decision to purchase the notes should be made only after carefully considering the risks of an investment in the notes, including those discussed below, with your advisors in light of your particular circumstances. The notes are not an appropriate investment for you if you are not knowledgeable about significant elements of the notes or financial matters in general.

Payments on the notes are subject to our credit risk, and actual or perceived changes in our creditworthiness are expected to affect the value of the notes. The notes are our senior unsecured debt securities. As a result, your receipt of all payments of interest and principal on the notes is dependent upon our ability to repay our obligations on the applicable payment date. No assurance can be given as to what our financial condition will be at any time during the term of the notes or on the maturity date. If we become unable to meet our financial obligations as they become due, you may not receive the amounts payable under the terms of the notes.

Our credit ratings are an assessment by ratings agencies of our ability to pay our obligations. Consequently, our perceived creditworthiness and actual or anticipated decreases in our credit ratings or increases in our credit spreads prior to the maturity date of the notes may adversely affect the market value of the notes. However, because your return on the notes depends upon factors in addition to our ability to pay our obligations, such as the difference between the interest rates accruing on the notes and current market interest rates, an improvement in our credit ratings will not reduce the other investment risks related to the notes.

The interest rate on the notes is capped. During the Floating Rate Period, the interest rate that will be payable on the notes in any quarterly interest period will be limited to the Cap. Accordingly, as a holder of the notes, you will not benefit from three-month U.S. dollar LIBOR being greater than the difference between the Cap and the Spread in any quarterly interest period during the Floating Rate Period.

We have included in the terms of the notes the costs of developing, hedging, and distributing them, and the price, if any, at which you may sell the notes in any secondary market transaction will likely be lower than the public offering price due to, among other things, the inclusion of these costs. In determining the economic terms of the notes, and consequently the potential return on the notes to you, a number of factors are taken into account. Among these factors are certain costs associated with developing, hedging, and offering the notes.

 

Assuming there is no change in market conditions or any other relevant factors, the price, if any, at which the selling agent or another purchaser might be willing to purchase the notes in a secondary market transaction is expected to be lower than the price that you paid for them. This is due to, among other things, the inclusion of these costs, and the costs of unwinding any relating hedging.

 

The quoted price of any of our affiliates for the notes could be higher or lower than the price that you paid for them.

 

We cannot assure you that a trading market for the notes will ever develop or be maintained. We will not list the notes on any securities exchange. We cannot predict how the notes will trade in any secondary market, or whether that market will be liquid or illiquid.

The development of a trading market for the notes will depend on our financial performance and other factors. The number of potential buyers of the notes in any secondary market may be limited. We anticipate that MLPF&S will act as a market-maker for the notes, but neither MLPF&S nor any of our other affiliates is required to do so. MLPF&S may

discontinue its market-making activities as to the notes at any time. To the extent that MLPF&S engages in any market-making activities, it may bid for or offer the notes. Any price at which MLPF&S may bid for, offer, purchase, or sell any notes may differ from the values determined by pricing models that it may use, whether as a result of dealer discounts, mark-ups, or other transaction costs. These bids, offers, or completed transactions may affect the prices, if any, at which the notes might otherwise trade in the market.

In addition, if at any time MLPF&S were to cease acting as a market-maker for the notes, it is likely that there would be significantly less liquidity in the secondary market and there may be no secondary market at all for the notes. In such a case, the price at which the notes could be sold likely would be lower than if an active market existed and you should be prepared to hold the notes until maturity.

Many economic and other factors will impact the market value of the notes. The market for, and the market value of, the notes may be affected by a number of factors that may either offset or magnify each other, including:

·

the time remaining to maturity of the notes;

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the aggregate amount outstanding of the notes;

·

the level, direction, and volatility of market interest rates generally;

·

general economic conditions of the capital markets in the United States;

·

geopolitical conditions and other financial, political, regulatory, and judicial events that affect the capital markets generally;

·

our financial condition and creditworthiness; and

·

any market-making activities with respect to the notes.

Uncertainty about the future of LIBOR and the potential discontinuance of LIBOR may adversely affect the value of the notes.   The Chief Executive of the United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authority (the “FCA”), which regulates LIBOR, has recently announced that the FCA intends to stop persuading or compelling banks to submit rates for the calculation of LIBOR after 2021.   At this time, it is not possible to predict the effect of any such changes, any establishment of alternative reference rates or any other reforms to LIBOR that may be implemented in the United Kingdom or elsewhere. Uncertainty as to the nature of such potential changes, alternative reference rates or other reforms may adversely affect the value of and trading market for the notes both prior to and during the Floating Rate Period.

If a published 3-month U.S. dollar LIBOR rate is unavailable after 2021, the rate of interest on the notes during the Floating Rate Period will be determined using the alternative methods set forth in the accompanying prospectus under “Description of Debt Securities—Floating Rate Notes—LIBOR Notes.” Any of these alternative methods may result in interest payments that are lower than or that do not otherwise correlate over time with the payments that would have been made on the notes during the Floating Rate Period if 3-month U.S. dollar LIBOR was available in its current form. Further, the same costs and risks that may lead to the discontinuation or unavailability of 3-month U.S. dollar LIBOR may make one or more of the alternative methods impossible or impracticable to determine. If, as set forth in the accompanying prospectus under “Description of Debt Securities—Floating Rate Notes—LIBOR Notes,” a published 3-month U.S. dollar LIBOR rate is unavailable during the Floating Rate Period and banks are unwilling to provide quotations for the calculation of LIBOR, the alternative method sets the interest rate for an interest period as the same rate as the immediately preceding interest period, which could remain in effect for the remaining term of the notes, and the value of the notes may be adversely affected.

Our trading and hedging activities may create conflicts of interest with you. We or one or more of our affiliates, including MLPF&S, may engage in trading activities related to the notes that are not for your account or on your behalf. We expect to enter into arrangements to hedge the market risks associated with our obligation to pay the amounts due under the notes. We may seek competitive terms in entering into the hedging arrangements for the notes, but are not required to do so, and we may enter into such hedging arrangements with one of our subsidiaries or affiliates. This hedging activity is expected to result in a profit to those engaging in the hedging activity, which could be more or less than initially expected, but which could also result in a loss for the hedging counterparty. These trading and hedging activities may present a conflict of interest between your interest in the notes and the interests we and our affiliates may have in our proprietary accounts, in facilitating transactions for our other customers, and in accounts under our management.

 

U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX SUMMARY

The following summary of the material U.S. federal income tax considerations of the acquisition, ownership, and disposition of the notes is based upon the advice of Morrison & Foerster LLP, our tax counsel. The following discussion supplements, and to the extent inconsistent supersedes, the discussions under “U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations” in the accompanying prospectus and under “U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations” in the accompanying prospectus supplement and is not exhaustive of all possible tax considerations. This summary is based upon the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), regulations promulgated under the Code by the U.S. Treasury Department (“Treasury”) (including proposed and temporary regulations), rulings, current administrative interpretations and official pronouncements of the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), and judicial decisions, all as currently in effect and all of which are subject to differing interpretations or to change, possibly with retroactive effect. No assurance can be given that the IRS would not assert, or that a court would not sustain, a position contrary to any of the tax consequences described below. This summary does not include any description of the tax laws of any state or local governments, or of any foreign government, that may be applicable to a particular holder.

This summary is directed solely to U.S. Holders and Non-U.S. Holders that, except as otherwise specifically noted, will purchase the notes upon original issuance and will hold the notes as capital assets within the meaning of Section 1221 of the Code, which generally means property held for investment, and that are not excluded from the discussion under “U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations” in the accompanying prospectus. This summary assumes that the issue price of the notes, as determined for U.S. federal income tax purposes, equals the principal amount thereof.

U.S. Holders

The notes will be treated as variable rate debt instruments providing for stated interest at a single fixed rate and one or more qualified floating rates. Under Treasury regulations applicable to such instruments, you generally will be required to account for interest on the notes as described below. You will be required to construct an “equivalent fixed rate debt instrument” for the notes and apply the general rules applicable to debt instruments described under the section of the prospectus entitled “U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations – Taxation of Debt Securities.” The applicable rules require (i) replacing the initial fixed rate by a “qualified floating rate” that would preserve the fair market value of the notes, and (ii) determining the fixed rate substitute for each floating rate. The fixed rate substitute for each qualified floating rate is the value of the rate on the issue date of the notes. The equivalent fixed rate debt instrument is the hypothetical instrument that has terms that are identical to those of the notes, except that the equivalent fixed rate debt instrument provides for the fixed rate substitutes in lieu of the rates on the notes. Under these rules, the equivalent fixed rate debt instrument will have stated interest equal to the fixed rate substitutes. The amount of OID is determined for the equivalent fixed rate debt instrument under the rules applicable to fixed rate debt instruments and is taken into account as if the holder held the equivalent fixed rate debt instrument. Please see the discussion in the prospectus under the section entitled “U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations – Taxation of Debt Securities – Consequences to U.S. Holders – Original Issue Discount” for a discussion of these rules. Under these rules, the notes may be issued with OID. Whether the notes will be treated as being issued with OID will depend on rates in effect on the issue date and, in that event, the final pricing supplement will so specify. You will be required to make appropriate adjustments for interest actually paid on the notes. Qualified stated interest and OID, if any, allocable to an accrual period must be increased (or decreased) if the interest actually accrued or paid during an accrual period exceeds (or is less than) the interest assumed to be accrued or paid during the accrual period under the equivalent fixed rate debt instrument. This increase or decrease is an adjustment to qualified stated interest for the accrual period if the equivalent fixed rate debt instrument provides for qualified stated interest and the increase or decrease is reflected in the amount actually paid during the accrual period. Otherwise, this increase or decrease is an adjustment to OID, if any, for the accrual period.

Upon the sale, exchange, retirement, or other disposition of a note, a U.S. Holder will recognize gain or loss equal to the difference between the amount realized upon the sale, exchange, retirement, or other disposition (less an amount equal to any accrued interest not previously included in income if the note is disposed of between interest payment dates, which will be included in income as interest income for U.S. federal income tax purposes) and the U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis in the note. A U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis in a note generally will be the cost of the note to such U.S. Holder, increased by any OID previously included in income with respect to the note, and decreased by the amount of any payment (other than a payment of qualified stated interest) received in respect of the note. Any gain or loss realized on the sale, exchange, retirement, or other disposition of a note generally will be capital gain or loss and will be long-term capital gain or loss if the note has been held for more than one year. The ability of U.S. Holders to deduct capital losses is subject to limitations under the Code.

Non-U.S. Holders

Please see the discussion under “U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations—Taxation of Debt Securities—Consequences to Non-U.S. Holders” in the accompanying prospectus for the material U.S. federal income tax consequences that will apply to Non-U.S. Holders of the notes.

Backup Withholding and Information Reporting

Please see the discussion under “U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations—Taxation of Debt Securities—Backup Withholding and Information Reporting” in the accompanying prospectus for a description of the applicability of the backup withholding and information reporting rules to payments made on the notes.

You should consult your own tax advisor concerning the U.S. federal income tax consequences to you of acquiring, owning, and disposing of the notes, as well as any tax consequences arising under the laws of any state, local, foreign, or other tax jurisdiction and the possible effects of changes in U.S. federal or other tax laws.

SUPPLEMENTAL PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION—conflicts of interest

Our broker-dealer subsidiary, MLPF&S, will act as our selling agent in connection with the offering of the notes. The selling agent is a party to the Distribution Agreement described in the “Supplemental Plan of Distribution (Conflicts of Interest)” beginning on page S-23 of the accompanying prospectus supplement.

The selling agent will receive the compensation set forth on the cover page of this pricing supplement as to the notes sold through its efforts. We or one of our affiliates may pay varying selling concessions of up to 1.25% in connection with the distribution of the notes to other registered broker-dealers.

The selling agent is a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (“FINRA”). Accordingly, the offering of the notes will conform to the requirements of FINRA Rule 5121.

The selling agent is not acting as your fiduciary or advisor solely as a result of the offering of the notes, and you should not rely upon any communication from the selling agent in connection with the notes as investment advice or a recommendation to purchase the notes. You should make your own investment decision regarding the notes after consulting with your legal, tax, and other advisors.

Under the terms of our distribution agreement with MLPF&S, MLPF&S will purchase the notes from us on the issue date as principal at the purchase price indicated on the cover of this pricing supplement, less the indicated underwriting discount.

MLPF&S may sell the notes to other broker-dealers that will participate in the offering and that are not affiliated with us, at an agreed discount to the principal amount. Each of those broker-dealers may sell the notes to one or more additional broker-dealers. MLPF&S has informed us that these discounts may vary from dealer to dealer and that not all dealers will purchase or repurchase the notes at the same discount.

MLPF&S and any of our other broker-dealer affiliates may use this pricing supplement, and the accompanying prospectus supplement and prospectus for offers and sales in secondary market transactions and market-making transactions in the notes. However, they are not obligated to engage in such secondary market transactions and/or market-making transactions. Our affiliates may act as principal or agent in these transactions, and any such sales will be made at prices related to prevailing market prices at the time of the sale.

ERISA CONSIDERATIONS

Each fiduciary of a pension, profit-sharing, or other employee benefit plan subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”) (a “Plan”), should consider the fiduciary standards of ERISA in the context of the Plan’s particular circumstances before authorizing an investment in the notes. Accordingly, among other factors, the fiduciary should consider whether the investment would satisfy the prudence and diversification requirements of ERISA and would be consistent with the documents and instruments governing the Plan.

In addition, we and certain of our subsidiaries and affiliates, including MLPF&S, may be each considered a party in interest within the meaning of ERISA, or a disqualified person (within the meaning of the Code), with respect to many Plans, as well as many individual retirement accounts and Keogh plans (also “Plans”). Prohibited transactions within the meaning of ERISA or the Code would likely arise, for example, if the notes are acquired by or with the assets of a Plan with respect to which we or any of our affiliates is a party in interest, unless the notes are acquired under an exemption from the prohibited transaction rules. A violation of these prohibited transaction rules could result in an excise tax or other liabilities under ERISA and/or Section 4975 of the Code for such persons, unless exemptive relief is available under an applicable statutory or administrative exemption.

Under ERISA and various prohibited transaction class exemptions (“PTCEs”) issued by the U.S. Department of Labor, exemptive relief may be available for direct or indirect prohibited transactions resulting from the purchase, holding, or disposition of the notes. Those exemptions are PTCE 96-23 (for certain transactions determined by in-house asset managers), PTCE 95-60 (for certain transactions involving insurance company general accounts), PTCE 91-38 (for certain transactions involving bank collective investment funds), PTCE 90-1 (for certain transactions involving insurance company separate accounts), PTCE 84-14 (for certain transactions determined by independent qualified asset managers), and the exemption under Section 408(b)(17) of ERISA and Section 4975(d)(20) of the Code for certain arm’s-length transactions with a person that is a party in interest solely by reason of providing services to Plans or being an affiliate of such a service provider (the “Service Provider Exemption”).

Because we may be considered a party in interest with respect to many Plans, the notes may not be purchased, held, or disposed of by any Plan, any entity whose underlying assets include plan assets by reason of any Plan’s investment in the entity (a “Plan Asset Entity”) or any person investing plan assets of any Plan, unless such purchase, holding, or disposition is eligible for exemptive relief, including relief available under PTCE 96-23, 95-60, 91-38, 90-1, or 84-14 or the Service Provider Exemption, or such purchase, holding, or disposition is otherwise not prohibited. Any purchaser, including any fiduciary purchasing on behalf of a Plan, transferee or holder of the notes will be deemed to have represented, in its corporate and its fiduciary capacity, by its purchase and holding of the notes that either (a) it is not a Plan or a Plan Asset Entity and is not purchasing such notes on behalf of or with plan assets of any Plan or any plan subject to similar laws or (b) its purchase, holding, and disposition are eligible for exemptive relief or such purchase, holding, and disposition are not prohibited by ERISA or Section 4975 of the Code or similar laws.

Further, any person acquiring or holding the notes on behalf of any plan or with any plan assets shall be deemed to represent on behalf of itself and such plan that (x) the plan is paying no more than, and is receiving no less than, adequate consideration within the meaning of Section 408(b)(17) of ERISA in connection with the transaction or any redemption of the notes, (y) none of us, MLPF&S, or any other selling agent directly or indirectly exercises any discretionary authority or control or renders investment advice or otherwise acts in a fiduciary capacity with respect to the assets of the plan within the meaning of ERISA and (z) in making the foregoing representations and warranties, such person has applied sound business principles in determining whether fair market value will be paid, and has made such determination acting in good faith.

The fiduciary investment considerations summarized above generally apply to employee benefit plans maintained by private-sector employers and to individual retirement accounts and other arrangements subject to Section 4975 of the Code, but generally do not apply to governmental plans (as defined in Section 3(32) of ERISA), certain church plans (as defined in Section 3(33) of ERISA), and foreign plans (as described in Section 4(b)(4) of ERISA). However, these other plans may be subject to similar provisions under applicable federal, state, local, foreign, or other regulations, rules, or laws (“similar laws”). The fiduciaries of plans subject to similar laws should also consider the foregoing issues in general terms as well as any further issues arising under the applicable similar laws.

In addition, any purchaser, that is a Plan or a Plan Asset Entity or that is acquiring the notes on behalf of a Plan or a Plan Asset Entity, including any fiduciary purchasing on behalf of a Plan or Plan Asset entity, will be deemed to have represented, in its corporate and its fiduciary capacity, by its purchase and holding of the notes that (a) none of us, MLPF&S, or any of our other affiliates is a “fiduciary” (under Section 3(21) of ERISA, or under any final or proposed regulations thereunder, or with respect to a governmental, church, or foreign plan under any similar laws) with respect to the acquisition, holding or disposition of the notes, or as a result of any exercise by us or our affiliates of any rights in connection with the notes, (b) no advice provided by us or any of our affiliates has formed a primary basis for any investment decision by or on behalf of such purchaser in connection with the notes and the transactions contemplated with respect to the notes, and (c) such purchaser recognizes and agrees that any communication from us or any of our affiliates to the purchaser with respect to the notes is not intended by us or any of our affiliates to be impartial investment advice and is rendered in its capacity as a seller of such notes and not a fiduciary to such purchaser. Purchasers of the notes have exclusive responsibility for ensuring that their purchase, holding, and disposition of the notes do not violate the prohibited transaction rules of ERISA or the Code or any similar regulations applicable to governmental or church plans, as described above.

This discussion is a general summary of some of the rules which apply to benefit plans and their related investment vehicles. This summary does not include all of the investment considerations relevant to Plans and other benefit plan investors such as governmental, church, and foreign plans and should not be construed as legal advice or a legal opinion. Due to the complexity of these rules and the penalties that may be imposed upon persons involved in non-exempt prohibited transactions, it is particularly important that fiduciaries or other persons considering purchasing the notes on behalf of or with “plan assets” of any Plan or other benefit plan investor consult with their legal counsel prior to directing any such purchase.