Listening to and reading about what Bank of America Corp.’s (NYSE:BAC) Brian Moynihan has been saying in the first few days as CEO of the banking giant makes me think he’s attempting to position himself as the voice of the banking industry and its standard bearer going forward.
That isn’t completely surprising, assuming that’s true, as the leader of America’s largest banks, and one of the largest in the world, definitely has a lot of influence, and will be listened to when he speaks. It’s interesting to see him attempt this from day one in his position in the company, as he seems to want to take this and run with it, while guiding the overall industry where he wants it to go for the benefit of Bank of America especially.
In an opinion piece he recently talked about the need to balance the way banks operate going forward, stating they need to build up reserves and take a more conservative approach, while looking at lower leverage deal in areas of growth and generating more revenue and profits.
He has also come out against the reinstatement of the Glass-Steagall Act, which disallows banks from combining commercial and investment banking. After the acquisition of Merrill Lynch and beginning to integrate them into the company, it would be a mess to disentangle them if Glass-Steagall, or parts of Glass-Steagall were to be implemented again.
Some watching Moynihan’s quick public exposure and communication think he should slow down until he has a comprehensive plan in place to say to someone which makes sense. In other words, much of what he has been saying is being viewed as very general by some; but again, it depends on what his real purpose in making the statements are.
Obviously he’s not trying to solve the problems in the industry right away, although he does show that he understands them. Again, I think he’s positioning himself to be the leader of the banking industry in America, and if he succeeds, will attempt to steer it where he wants in the light of the regulatory environment he has stepped into.
While becoming a figurehead has no value in and of itself, it does provide a platform to influence in a way that could not only help Bank of America, but the banking industry in general. The question is whether other banking leaders will allow that to happen, and what happens if it backfires and Moynihan also becomes the chief target for politicians and the media to use as a scapegoat for whatever ills of the industry that come about in the near future.
It looks like Moynihan is willing to take that risk. But first he’ll have to pull it off and become the face of the industry, something that is not a certainty by any means.
