The tentative deal, reached July 30 during a night telephone conversation between Attorney General Eric Holder and Brian Moynihan, CEO of the nation's second-largest bank, surpasses a similar $13 billion settlement with JPMorgan Chase last November, said the official, who is not authorized to comment publicly.

Last week's telephone call, the official said, came as Justice officials in New Jersey prepared to file a complaint against Merrill Lynch, a unit that Bank of America acquired during the financial crisis. The official said the bank then requested the call with Holder, and subsequently raised its payment offer to reach a tentative settlement.

Although there is an agreement in principle on the value of the deal, the official said other issues have yet to be resolved, and it could be days before any public announcement is made.

A second government official briefed on the negotiations said the settlement is expected to include "hundreds of millions" of dollars in consumer relief to help struggling homeowners cope with their mortgages. The official, who also was not authorized to speak publicly because the negotiations are confidential, cautioned that final deal terms are not yet complete.

Financial watchdogs and others who questioned past settlements among major banks and the Department of Justice questioned whether the tentative settlement would represent a sufficient penalty.

"The DOJ can be counted on to brag that the settlement dollar amount with Bank of America sets yet another record and claim, again, that this shows DOJ is tough on Wall Street," said Dennis Kelleher, president and CEO of Better Markets, a financial watchdog group. "But, unlike other recent settlements, will DOJ provide the public with the key information on investor losses, Bank of America profits, the names of involved executives, specific laws broken and the actual systemic illegal schemes and activities?"

Similarly, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., noted that Bank of America received more than $1 trillion "in virtually zero-interest loans" through government bailouts during the financial crisis. Given that, plus the fact that nobody from the bank has gone to prison for failings related to the meltdown, "this is a very modest settlement," said Sanders.

Here are some other major legal settlements by large U.S. banks in recent years:

• July 2014: $7 billion – Citigroup agreement with the Department of Justice for its role in the sale of risky, mortgage-based securities in the run-up to the nation's 2008 financial crisis.

• November 2013: $13 billion – JPMorgan Chase settlement of multiple federal and state investigations over toxic mortgage investments like those that helped spark the financial crisis.

• January 2013 and Feb. 2012: $1.8 billion – Two agreements in which Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup and other major banks joined in a nationwide settlement over allegations the institutions improperly carried out home foreclosures after the housing market crisis.

• January 2013: $10 billion – Bank of America agreement with federal mortgage issuer Fannie Mae to settle allegations of improper mortgage handling during the national financial crisis.

• September 2012: $2.43 billion – Bank of America payment to settle shareholder lawsuits that accused the bank of misleading investors about its acquisition of brokerage Merrill Lynch.

(Published by USA Today - August 7, 2014)