Back in November, Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) agreed to shell out $3.3 billion for U.S. Trust, a bank that focuses on the super wealthy. Only five months later and the deal is already going sideways [subscription required]. The CEO of U.S. Trust, Peter Scaturro, is going to leave by summer.

I'm not surprised. When the deal was struck, several friends of mine from U.S. Trust left to go to other private banks. They told me that there would be a culture clash, so why jeopardize clients?

This was exactly the case with contended issues ranging from serious to funny. For example, one dispute was whether to charge clients ATM fees (to me, if a client has $100 million with your bank, it does sound kind of petty). Another issue was investment selections -- should Bank of America push its own products?

This is not to say that the deal will implode. It's smart that Bank of America is taking quick action, but to get things back on track, it may mean letting U.S. Trust have its own identity – lest more financial advisors and perhaps clients move elsewhere.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including the Complete M&A Handbook and the EDGAR-Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements.

The rich are getting richer, right? Well, if so, it should be a good idea to invest in money management services for the mega-rich.

At least that was the theory when Charles Schwab (NASDAQ:SCHW) purchased US Trust in 2000 for about $2.9 billion. Interestingly enough, Schwab is now selling this division to Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) for about $3.3 billion.

US Trust has a venerable history, getting its start in 1853. No doubt the firm's stability is a great attraction to its high-net worth clients.

However, this market is highly competitive, with other big-names such as Citigroup (NYSE:C) playing a major role.

As for Bank America, the deal gets them a bigger presence quickly, as well as a great brand. Keep in mind that on average an US Trust client has about $60 million under management. It also has a number of billionaire clients, and is the fourth largest manager of private wealth in the U.S.

Basically, it was tough for Schwab to provide the kind of services the mega rich want -- such as hedge funds, private equity and even IPOs. For Bank America, which is the second largest manager of private wealth in the United States, this should not be a problem.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including the Complete M&A Handbook and operates InvestorOffering.com.