Consumer Bank Balances Are Still Propping Up Spending, BofA Says

Consumer spending is still benefiting from the extra padding bank balances got during the pandemic, according to Bank of America Corp. executive Dean Athanasia.

“Consumer is still very healthy, they still have balances left over,” with 23% more funds in their checking accounts than they had before the pandemic, Athanasia, the firm’s president of regional banking, said at the Morgan Stanley financial conference Tuesday. Credit-card payments are also returning to normal, with loss rates coming in line with what they were in 2019, he said.