Variable Interest Entities - Loan Delinquencies and Net Charge-offs (Details 7) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2012	Jun. 30, 2011	Jun. 30, 2012	Jun. 30, 2011	Dec. 31, 2011
Information about delinquencies, net charge-offs, and components of off-balance sheet securitized financial assets [Abstract]
Total assets held by securitization VIEs	$ 320,200,000,000		$ 320,200,000,000		$ 344,100,000,000
Prime [Member]
Information about delinquencies, net charge-offs, and components of off-balance sheet securitized financial assets [Abstract]
Total assets held by securitization VIEs	118,700,000,000		118,700,000,000		129,900,000,000
Subprime [Member]
Information about delinquencies, net charge-offs, and components of off-balance sheet securitized financial assets [Abstract]
Total assets held by securitization VIEs	35,900,000,000		35,900,000,000		39,400,000,000
Option Arms
Information about delinquencies, net charge-offs, and components of off-balance sheet securitized financial assets [Abstract]
Total assets held by securitization VIEs	28,700,000,000		28,700,000,000		31,400,000,000
Commercial Mortgage Backed and Other Securities [Member]
Information about delinquencies, net charge-offs, and components of off-balance sheet securitized financial assets [Abstract]
Total assets held by securitization VIEs	132,900,000,000		132,900,000,000		139,300,000,000
Securitized loans [Member]
Information about delinquencies, net charge-offs, and components of off-balance sheet securitized financial assets [Abstract]
90 days past due	42,913,000,000		42,913,000,000		53,413,000,000
Liquidation Losses	3,371,000,000	2,575,000,000	6,716,000,000	5,712,000,000
Securitized loans in which the firm has no continuing involvement	71,800,000,000		71,800,000,000		74,400,000,000
Securitized loans [Member] | Prime [Member]
Information about delinquencies, net charge-offs, and components of off-balance sheet securitized financial assets [Abstract]
90 days past due	20,520,000,000		20,520,000,000		24,285,000,000
Liquidation Losses	2,125,000,000	1,244,000,000	3,824,000,000	2,734,000,000
Securitized loans [Member] | Subprime [Member]
Information about delinquencies, net charge-offs, and components of off-balance sheet securitized financial assets [Abstract]
90 days past due	10,732,000,000		10,732,000,000		14,293,000,000
Liquidation Losses	320,000,000	616,000,000	1,121,000,000	1,616,000,000
Securitized loans [Member] | Option Arms
Information about delinquencies, net charge-offs, and components of off-balance sheet securitized financial assets [Abstract]
90 days past due	8,036,000,000		8,036,000,000		9,999,000,000
Liquidation Losses	634,000,000	465,000,000	1,250,000,000	908,000,000
Securitized loans [Member] | Commercial Mortgage Backed and Other Securities [Member]
Information about delinquencies, net charge-offs, and components of off-balance sheet securitized financial assets [Abstract]
90 days past due	3,625,000,000		3,625,000,000		4,836,000,000
Liquidation Losses	292,000,000	250,000,000	521,000,000	454,000,000
Variable Interest Entity, Not Primary Beneficiary [Member]
Information about delinquencies, net charge-offs, and components of off-balance sheet securitized financial assets [Abstract]
Credit exposure / loans securitized	239,536,000,000		239,536,000,000		261,170,000,000
Variable Interest Entity, Not Primary Beneficiary [Member] | Prime [Member]
Information about delinquencies, net charge-offs, and components of off-balance sheet securitized financial assets [Abstract]
Credit exposure / loans securitized	93,158,000,000		93,158,000,000		101,004,000,000
Variable Interest Entity, Not Primary Beneficiary [Member] | Subprime [Member]
Information about delinquencies, net charge-offs, and components of off-balance sheet securitized financial assets [Abstract]
Credit exposure / loans securitized	28,959,000,000		28,959,000,000		35,755,000,000
Variable Interest Entity, Not Primary Beneficiary [Member] | Option Arms
Information about delinquencies, net charge-offs, and components of off-balance sheet securitized financial assets [Abstract]
Credit exposure / loans securitized	28,425,000,000		28,425,000,000		31,075,000,000
Variable Interest Entity, Not Primary Beneficiary [Member] | Commercial Mortgage Backed and Other Securities [Member]
Information about delinquencies, net charge-offs, and components of off-balance sheet securitized financial assets [Abstract]
Credit exposure / loans securitized	88,994,000,000		88,994,000,000		93,336,000,000
Variable Interest Entity, Primary Beneficiary [Member]
Information about delinquencies, net charge-offs, and components of off-balance sheet securitized financial assets [Abstract]
Assets held in consolidated securitization VIEs	8,900,000,000		8,900,000,000		8,500,000,000
Variable Interest Entity, Primary Beneficiary [Member] | Prime [Member]
Information about delinquencies, net charge-offs, and components of off-balance sheet securitized financial assets [Abstract]
Assets held in consolidated securitization VIEs	3,400,000,000		3,400,000,000		2,700,000,000
Variable Interest Entity, Primary Beneficiary [Member] | Subprime [Member]
Information about delinquencies, net charge-offs, and components of off-balance sheet securitized financial assets [Abstract]
Assets held in consolidated securitization VIEs	1,200,000,000		1,200,000,000		1,400,000,000
Variable Interest Entity, Primary Beneficiary [Member] | Option Arms
Information about delinquencies, net charge-offs, and components of off-balance sheet securitized financial assets [Abstract]
Assets held in consolidated securitization VIEs	300,000,000		300,000,000		300,000,000
Variable Interest Entity, Primary Beneficiary [Member] | Commercial Mortgage Backed and Other Securities [Member]
Information about delinquencies, net charge-offs, and components of off-balance sheet securitized financial assets [Abstract]
Assets held in consolidated securitization VIEs	$ 0		$ 0		$ 0