NEW YORK and LONDON, July 25 /PRNewswire/ -- Bank of America and Climate Exchange PLC today announced that Bank of America will become a member of the Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX), the world's first and North America's only voluntary emissions exchange with a legally binding greenhouse gas reduction registry and trading program. In addition, Bank of America has committed to join the Chicago Climate Futures Exchange (CCFE) and the European Climate Exchange (ECX). Bank of America will also develop, market and execute new environmentally focused products utilizing CLE-linked offsets, which are credits used by individuals and corporations to reduce total carbon footprint. Bank of America will help drive revenue to CLE through the sale of such environmentally-focused products.

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Bank of America's membership on the CCX is a key step in the development of its carbon emission credit trading platform, which is part of the bank's $20 billion environmental initiative to support the growth of environmentally sustainable business activity to address global climate change. The bank's ten-year initiative encourages the development of environmentally sustainable business practices through lending, investing, philanthropy and the creation of new products and services.

Bank of America and CLE have also entered into an agreement to form a joint venture, in conjunction with Bank of America acquiring, through an off exchange transaction at a 5% discount to market, approximately 0.5% of the current issued share capital of CLE. The joint venture will be structured so that Bank of America will earn the right to be issued additional CLE stock with a value of up to U.S. $25 million dependent on revenues generated by the joint venture. The additional CLE stock will be valued on a price per share of 18.65 pounds Sterling, the closing mid-market price of CLE stock on July 20.

As part of its CCX membership, joint venture and minority investment stake, Bank of America has committed to:

    -- Expand its greenhouse gas emission reduction target;
    -- Provide liquidity on the CCX, ECX and CCFE;
    -- Join CCX's Offsets Committee;
    -- Purchase a minimum of 500,000 tons of offsets over a three-year period
       of time;
    -- Treat CLE exchanges as preferred providers for exchange traded
       environmental product execution; and
    -- Develop and launch later this year, carbon-related products and
       services for Bank of America's retail and institutional customers who
       wish to reduce their own carbon footprint.

Bank of America is the largest financial institution and one of the largest Fortune 500 companies to become a member of the CCX.

"Bank of America will play an active role in the growing emission trading industry through our membership and investment in the exchange," said Richie Prager, head of global rates, currencies and commodities for Bank of America. "As we partner with CCX and launch our carbon emission credit trading platform and products later this year, we will ultimately do well by doing good. Helping individuals and corporations understand their carbon footprint, hedge against it and reduce emissions to reach carbon neutrality is of paramount importance in achieving an environmentally sustainable economy."

Richard Sandor, Chairman of Climate Exchange PLC, said "Financial solutions promoting environmental sustainability lie at the heart of Climate Exchange. Our ability to succeed is about the quality and focus of our members and partners. In Bank of America we have a working, commercial relationship which takes our initiatives into the day to day financial activities of a great number of corporations and consumers. We are excited about the prospects presented by the agreement and look forward to working with the Bank of America team."

Bank of America

Bank of America is one of the world's largest financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk-management products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving more than 55 million consumer and small business relationships with more than 5,700 retail banking offices, through more than 17,000 ATMs and award-winning online banking with more than 21 million active users. Bank of America is the No. 1 overall Small Business Administration (SBA) lender in the United States and the No. 1 SBA lender to minority-owned small businesses. The company serves clients in 175 countries and has relationships with 98 percent of the US Fortune 500 companies and 80 percent of the Global Fortune 500. Bank of America Corporation stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Bank of America is an equal housing lender.

Climate Exchange Plc

Climate Exchange Plc is a holding company whose subsidiaries are principally engaged in owning, operating and developing exchanges to facilitate trading in environmental financial instruments including emissions reduction credits in both voluntary and mandatory markets. The two main businesses are the Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX) which operates a voluntary but legally binding cap and trade system including an exchange for CO2 emissions as well as SOx and NOx contracts in the US and internationally, and the European Climate Exchange (ECX) which operates an exchange focused on compliance certificates for the mandatory European Emissions Trading Scheme.