Posted on 01/25/2009 6:35:41 PM PST by rabscuttle385
BY DAN FITZPATRICK and JOANN S. LUBLIN
Bank of America Corp.'s handling of its acquisition of troubled Merrill Lynch & Co. has put Chairman and Chief Executive Kenneth Lewis on the hot seat with irate shareholders. Among those disappointed in the steep decline in the bank's stock are two veterans who helped Mr. Lewis rise to the top.
Hugh McColl Jr., Bank of America's buccaneering former chairman and chief executive, who picked Mr. Lewis as his successor, and James Hance, the bank's former chief financial officer, privately have expressed disappointment in the types of risks taken by Bank of America during this financial crisis, according to people close to the men.
. . . . .
Massive fourth-quarter losses at Merrill forced Bank of America to take an additional $20 billion in capital from the U.S. government, further diluting the holdings of existing shareholders. That move particularly angered shareholders because Bank of America didn't disclose its talks with the government until after it closed on the Merrill acquisition.
Mr. Lewis thought about scrapping the deal but decided against it after federal officials urged him to reconsider.
"Hugh is livid," said a person who has discussed the bank's performance with Mr. McColl, who retired in 2001.
. . . . .
Reeling from the blow-up over the Merrill deal, some Bank of America directors informally reached out tentatively to Mr. Hance to see if he might be interested in becoming CEO in case the board decided to make such a move, said two people familiar with the matter.
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
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Bank of America and Ken Lewis = Illegal alien lovers.
Once again karma comes around and bites ya in the arse.
Stan O’Neil who ran Merrill Lynch (into the ground) should be in jail.
lewis is out.
I have a BOA credit card and everytime I use it my points drop 5, when it automatically gets paid it goes up 10. BOA is on the cusp.
Does this mean your credit rating falls when you use the B of A card???
I have a Citibank card and I feel great using it because I’m more solvent than they are!!!
Yep! I have a watch on my rating and the BofA card affects right away. BTW I just learned a new account was opened somewhere yesterday. I was home all day. I advise everyone who can to purchase a credit watch.
Words of wisdom (re Stan).
These guys are both idiots. The know how to get big, but they don't know how to make money.
I always wondered which Carolina bank would crash first - First Union (Wachovia) or Nations Bank (B of A) I alwys thought it was going to be Nations Bank, after their shareholder destroying acquisition of Barnett Banks for 4.2 times book.
My local B of A bank has cut employees to the bone.
On Friday I went to the bank (Friday being the busiest day of the week at the bank.) When they used to have 4 tellers in the bank and 2 on the drive up, they now had one person doing both. Lines were long and slow.
If that is any indication, the end must be near.
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