Bank of America Merrill Lynch gets praise for helping Sears in spin-off

Remember all those problems Sears was having?

Amid years of revenue declines, Sears Holdings said in 2011 that it would close up to 120 Kmarts and flagship Sears stores -- including at least four in North Carolina. Then last fall, Sears spun off its Outlet and Hometown stores in a deal netting them $446 million.

Today, Bank of America Merrill Lynch said that Sears has given them a big "thank you" for helping out with that.

The Charlotte bank managed a loan for Sears while it spun off the stores. Merrill also does credit cards for the company (like purchasing cards and travel and expense cards), and set up an electronic payment system at Sears last year.

All that got Bank of America Merrill Lynch a "2013 Partner in Transformation" award from Sears Holdings. Bank of America says that less than half of one percent of Sears 30,000 vendors get one of those -- or about 150 companies.