Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) Begins Search for New CEO

Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) directors have formed a six-person committee to find a new chief executive officer to replace Kenneth Lewis, and will likely begin to develop a list of potential candidates next week.

The formal process for succession began at a Bank of America board meeting held on Friday by phone. Directors agreed that the company needed to find the right CEO quickly, but the search is still at a very preliminary stage. Directors agreed that they have no strong preference whether or not the new CEO should be an internal or external hire.

Board members are weighing the possibility of bringing on a short-term CEO that could hold the company’s top job for about two years as the company finds a candidate to lead the company for years to come. If Bank of America opts for a short-term scenario, it’s extremely unlikely that the current director would become the CEO.

The search committee, expected to hire an outside firm, will be led by the company’s chairman, Walter Massey. Three additional members, Charles Gifford, Thomas May and Thomas Ryan joined Bank of America after it acquired FleetBoston Financial Corp. These three committee members are closed to Brian Moynihan, the head of the bank’s consumer and small business operations, and is widely considered to be the leading internal candidate to succeed Kenneith Lewis as CEO.

Also on the board is the former chairman of the FDIC, Donald Powel. DuPont Co. Chairman Chales Holiday, also on Bank of America’s board of directors will be part of the search committee for new CEO.

Some of the members of the board of directors have reservations about hiring the new CEO as an inside hire, but the option is gaining momentum in some parts of the country as a way to provide stability. If the company were to hire a new CEO from outside the company, some fear that many long time executives close to Kenneth Lewis might leave the company.