Merrill Lynch and Merrill Edge, two brokerage firms owned by Bank of America, offer similar investing options to their clients. In the early 20th century, Merrill Lynch emerged as a fully-fledged independent firm from the financial sector. Since 2008, when Bank of America bought it, it has been part of their company. The merged firm introduced the low-cost discount broker Merrill Edge in 2010, while Merrill Lynch continued to serve affluent investors.