BOA is the latest company to cut online stock trading fees -- from $20 to $14 for brokerage customers, and to $10 for BOA checking account holders. The trading fee will drop to $5 for "certain wealthy customers," reports Ann Carrns of the Wall Street Journal (Dec. 1 issue).

My reaction: Big deal! $14 trades is about the norm for most brokerage accounts, so I don't see the attraction of switching to BOA, unless you already have a checking account and trade frequently enough to justify going through the hassle of closing your old brokerage account elsewhere and transfering to BOA services.

As for the $5 fee for the wealthy, I have to ask -- what is BOA smoking? Rich people are not as likely as the general population to be lured in by low fees -- they're rich, they don't need to worry about fees! Rather, rich people are more concerned about (and willing to pay for) better service, which may work against BOA. That's because regardless of the features and reliability of BOA's online trading services, its brand has been built in different areas -- consumer and commercial banking. If you are serious about trading stocks, do you want to have trades handled by a company with only a few years' experience offering such services on a large scale?

One last shot against BOA: This is a corporate banking institution which makes money on nickel and diming its customers in new and creative ways. A common tactic in consumer banking has been to offer low and have money fees to get people to sign up for checking accounts, and a few years later, change the fee structure -- of course, to the bank's advantage.

Caveat emptor. mortgage calculator