I'm not sure if this is correct - the only bits that kept the ML brand were the private wealth management and some parts of the non-US global markets division.

I'm not sure if this is correct - the only bits that kept the ML brand were the private wealth management and some parts of the non-US global markets division. Even then, officially the full name is still "Bank of America Merrill Lynch" and I think only a minority would keep their employer listed as "Merrill Lynch". Merrill Lynch was not bought by BoA until September 2008 and the merger did not legally complete until December of the same year (followed by company-wide rebranding throughout 2009). So I think the flow on the graph shows those that were made redundant when Bear Stearns collapsed in March 2008 and then went on to employment with ML before the BoA merger, which happened nine months later. EDIT: grammar.