The position has become eminently political

Today is the date limit as it were the members of the Board of Bank of America to find a successor to Ken Lewis, sixty-two years, who announced his departure to the end of the year in retirement. But now it is clear that the quest will extend beyond Thanksgiving, celebrated today in the United States. At the time, it begins to pursue the search for a pattern in 2010, consider acting CEO and especially extending Ken Lewis to his position.

It is the Rocherdale analyst Dick Bove, who put the subject on the carpet. Having spoken to major investors of the Bank these days, it appeared to him that many were favourable to the idea. Even if it attributed to Ken Lewis the paternity of the losses past, "it knows the company better than anyone and can manage the" said the analyst. "Sent to persuade him would be a true moral support for leaders in place."

Internal and external candidates were approached, but the position has many défis. Bank of America received $ 45 billion of dollars of public funds. Its strategy and its CEO compensation is dependent on the goodwill of the public authorities. Ken Lewis, at the request of the representative of Treasury Ken Feinberg, who oversees the payroll issues, had to forego any salary in 2009. "The Government and perhaps some of the new members of the Board of Directors want to see the Bank reduce size, while the old heart of Bank of America opposes", observed Dick Bove.

The position has become eminently political. In addition to the Bank, it must be a leader who can spend time with the Federal Reserve, the Treasury and the regulators. It is also one of the reasons that would have encouraged Ken Lewis to take early retirement. The fight which opposed it to Ben Bernanke, the Chairman of the Fed, and Hank Paulson, the previous Secretary of the Treasury, about the buyout of Merrill Lynch, prompted him to end.

A young Board

Until April 2008, Ken Lewis was only master on the Bank of Charlotte, North Carolina. He had the titles of Director General and Chairman of the Board of Directors. A frond of shareholders led to separate the post into two and at least six members of the Council have been renewed in the spring. This young Council less well known home and no it is not yet really ground, which complicates as the search for a new boss.

The Bank was 6.5 billion of profits since the beginning of the year and has raised more than 40 billion to strengthen its balance sheet. Most analysts believe that the title will advance in the stock market. Bank of America has also begun to negotiate repayment of public funds. Some observers believe that the appointment of the new pattern could be announced at the same time as a sale of shares to repay the Government. "We are very close to the time where the intervention of public authorities will become less problematic," said upbeat, Anthony Polini, analyst at Raymond James Financial in Agency Bloomberg.