BofA Taking one for Team USA?
In a banking town like Charlotte, you can’t swing a dead cat without hitting a VP of one bank or another. Well, these days make that “or a former VP.”
One of my friends works for Bank of America and another is a criminal defense lawyer. The banker persists that Ken Lewis and BofA are being singled out for bad treatment by the feds. Here’s what the lawyer says on the matter of Mr Lewis and the Merrill Lynch deal:
Q: Did Mr. Lewis breach his fiduciary duty to BOA shareholders when he did not terminate the deal noting a contractual clause that losses were way over what was projected?
Q: Did Merrill execs enter into a contract knowing of these losses, hiding them in some way and using “fraud in the enducement”? Charges coming against Merrill execs.?
Q: Would BOA’s stock price settled at a higher price when the market hit rock bottom? i.e. not as big a loss to shareholders.
A: If yes, to any of these, then he failed in his duty as CEO. Thus, a jury must decide if that is negligent (fired for that) or criminally negligent or culpable (go to jail for this).
Bottom line: Taking one for the USA team is not a defense, it is mitigating.
“…you can’t swing a dead cat without hitting a VP of one bank or another. Well, these days make that ‘or a former VP.’ ”
I resent being struck with a dead cat
Good read, as always.