boa

Bank of America Merrill Lynch CEO Ken Lewis will retire by year-end. An August reorganisation flagged Sallie Krawcheck, Brian Moynihan and Tom Montag as possible successors, but no clear handover strategy has emerged.

Bank of America is told that it cannot use attorney-client privilege to withhold information about why BoA shareholders didn't receive material disclosures regarding Merrill's situation.

Decision-makers at Bank of America were influenced by regulators to let the merger proceed with the resultant impact on BoA seemingly not a key consideration.

Proxy advisory agencies and a large Bank of America investor advise shareholders to hold the chairman and CEO responsible for going ahead with the Merrill merger.

News that AIG will pay large bonuses causes discontent among US taxpayers. Meanwhile, a court is soon to decide whether Bank of America must release names of bonus recipients.

A meeting convened by US regulators highlights the issue of bonuses paid at US banks and the difficulty in striking a balance with respect to compensation.

Soofian Zuberi becomes responsible for all sales activities across both equities and fixed income, leaving Jason Cox as the sole head of equity capital markets.

In Asia, Sheldon Trainor sets out on his own (though continues as an adviser), Mark Matthews leaves the research team, and the firm sets up a new corporate finance advisory group.

Shareholders of both companies support the merger; a large reduction in staff is likely to be the next announcement.