Bank of America reported today that third quarter net income in its Global Wealth and Investment Management unit increased $79 million, or 34 per cent, to $313 million from a year earlier driven by lower credit costs and higher non interest income, partially offset by higher non interest expense. Net income in the second quarter was $356 million.

Revenue increased $200 million from a year earlier to $4.1 billion. The increase was driven by higher asset management fees and the absence of support for certain cash funds in the prior year, partially offset by lower brokerage income, the bank said. Revenue in the third quarter was down from the second quarter, which produced $4.3 billion. 

Assets under management fell to $624 billion from $739 billion a year earlier but were up from $603 billion from last quarter.

Total net client balances reached $2.1 trillion up from $2 trillion in the second quarter. Wealth management clients added $14 billion of deposits and $6 billion in long-term assets under management flows in the third quarter.

Assets under management and total net client assets include the Columbia Management long-term asset management business through the date of sale on May 1, 2010.

Merrill Lynch Global Wealth Management netted 5,201 new households with $250,000 or more up slightly from 5,156 in the second quarter.

The provision for credit losses decreased $387 million from a year ago to $128 million driven by lower reserve additions and net charge-offs in the consumer real estate and commercial portfolios, along with the absence of a prior-year single large commercial charge-off. Non interest expense increased from a year ago due primarily to higher revenue-related expenses, personnel costs, higher litigation and support costs.

The bank said that during the third quarter it maintained flat expenses as it repositioned resources to increase talent in wealth management and internationally in global markets.  The bank’s Merrill Lynch unit had 15,340 financial advisors in the third quarter up from 15,142 in the second.

Bank of America as a whole reported a net loss of $7.3 billion including a non-cash, non-tax deductible goodwill impairment charge of $10.4 billion. Excluding this charge, net income was $3.1 billion, compared with a net loss of $1 billion in the third quarter of 2009.