The additional payment was part of a deal with the U.S. government to preserve Bank of America's merger with the troubled investment firm Merrill Lynch.[60] Since then, members of the U.S. Congress have expressed considerable concern about how this money has been spent, especially since some of the recipients have been accused of misusing the bailout money.[61] Then CEO Ken Lewis was quoted as claiming "We are still lending, and we are lending far more because of the TARP program."