INVESTMENTS (Details 6) (USD $)	9 Months Ended		3 Months Ended	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2012	Sep. 30, 2011	Sep. 30, 2012 Maiden Lane III	Sep. 30, 2012 Maiden Lane III
VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITY
Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries			$ 8,470,000,000	$ 8,540,000,000
Equity in (income) loss from equity method investments, net of dividends or distributions	(527,000,000)	(840,000,000)		(5,000,000,000)
Securities purchased through FRBNY's auction of Maiden Lane III assets	$ 7,100,000,000		$ 7,100,000,000	$ 7,100,000,000