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FRONTLINE INVESTIGATES BANK OF AMERICA AND THE GOVERNMENT’S NEW ROLE IN THE BANKING SYSTEM
Breaking The Bank
Tuesday, June 16, 2009, at 9 P.M. ET on PBS
Ken Lewis, the CEO of Bank of America, is in trouble—a stock collapse; a rocky merger; the worst fourth-quarter losses in at least 17 years; a stockholder revolt; an urgent need to raise more capital despite a $45 billion infusion from the federal government; and on top of that, he effectively has a new boss, President Barack Obama.
In Breaking the Bank, airing Tuesday, June 16, 2009, on PBS (check local listings), FRONTLINE producer Michael Kirk (Inside the Meltdown, Bush’s War) draws on a rare combination of high-profile interviews with key players Ken Lewis and former Merrill Lynch CEO John Thain to reveal the story of two banks at the heart of the financial crisis, the rocky merger, and the government’s new role in taking over—some call it “nationalizing”—the American banking system.
It all began on that fateful weekend in September 2008 when the American economy was on the verge of melting down. Then-Secretary of the Treasury Henry Paulson, his former protégé John Thain, and Ken Lewis, one of the most powerful bankers in the country, secretly cut a deal to merge Bank of America and Merrill Lynch…
13 Comments
Thanks for the ‘heads up’Elliot.
My late mother became a BOA customer after her local bank went through several permutations. Then I ended up doing her banking…let me say that dealing with them was one of the singular..no, repeatedly.. most unpleasant customer experiences I have ever had. More rules than my own bank, less helpful etc etc etc…Just a sign of things to come, I guess. I hate to say that I am glad they are having myriad problems. What goes round, dontcha know.
Having just watched the program, it is clear that all are to blame.
But it is also scary to reflect on what Ken Lewis said regards the intertwining of BofA and the government, saying “they are close to the same thing”.
And it also became quite evident that the government DOES intervene in the ‘markets’ so the next time someone touts the ‘free market’ just point them to Paulson’s actions insisting that the BofA/Merrill merger go thru despite Lewis’ desire for it not to occur. And how willing the government was to commit taxpayer monies without letting the taxpayers,markets,Congress, or anyone outside of the principals what was going on.
That’s called fraud but no one is going to prosecute Paulson or Lewis.
I’ll repeat; get your monies out of the ‘big banks’ and into credit unions or community banks that are not overly leveraged.
I gather there are ongoing talks about the MAC clause in the merger of BoA and Merrill (or shotgun wedding as a Frontline commentator called it) based on this recent WSJ article. I thought it astonishing what Paulson got away with. It was something out of a Mario Puzo novel. Absolutely breathtaking. No single person should’ve had so much authority as Paulson deigned to wield. Unbelievable.
these people are tHe new JAMES GANG
they dont ride horses ,corporate jets and limoS are their transportation…MAKE NO MISTAKE,THEY WILL WIPE OUT our treasury,if allowed to continue
KEN LEWIS was pathetic,wondering WHY HIS SEAT was at the end of the table….EGO the size of AIGs losses
Hey, Elliott, thanks for the alert. Watched it last night and found it up to Frontline’s high standards. I am currently trying to convince my youngest son to quit banking with B of A and join a credit union. His main concern seems to be that he will have to change all his bill payer info, but it should ultimately be well worth it. Who needs a bank wherein the CEO thinks he deserves an eight digit bonus (not to mention what he thinks his top execs deserve)when the bank under his care is over-leveraged and on life supports.
I’ll grant that Lewis was not the most sympathetic character but next to Paulson his ego was modest by comparison. He made a series of serious mistakes showing a lack of judgment not suited for his position at the bank in Charlotte, based on the Frontline account.
First he took Paulson’s bait to buy Merrill without due diligence. Next he accepted the TARP money offered by Paulson (only Wells Fargo balked). Next, he refused to inform his stockholders of what he’d learned about Merrill after the merger. He went so far as to mislead the shareholders. When the news of Merrill finally reached the stockholders, he decides it’s time to invoke the MAC clause, which was far too late, apparently. He was intimidated by Paulson and his gang to go on with the marriage. Except for the decision to buy Merrill, his ego was not much of a factor. It was a series of humiliations for the most part. This was a guy who was not a club member. Not even the insider Thain rated inclusion among the Paulson gang.
I thought that culture clash noted on Frontline between Merrill and BoA (aka Nations Bank) was particularly nasty.
Basically, Lewis was taken to the cleaners by the Paulson gang, as far as I can tell.
I want to update the link in comment #4 above to one with the full article, plus a column from the 12th by Michael Whitney:
BofA, Merrill Drama Revives Talk Of MAC Clauses
U.S. Chamber of Commerce <3s Bank of America
Btw, <3s is the emoticon for "xxx", i.e., kisses.
didn’t get to watch, but am concerned about cold shouldering of Sheila Bair when it seems like she was really AWAKE. But she is a Republican and not a crony. Oy vey. No good deed goes unpunished. Geihtner wants her out I understand.
great analysis,but he so wanted to be a playa…Hanky Panky of course was/is JESSE JAMES
ps ,he ad wanted to buy Merrill(mystique etc) for years
The program was built on interviews with Lewis and Thain. No one else of note was interviewed. The FDIC is another story.
Maybe you’re right about Lewis’ abiding interest in acquiring Merrill. According to Frontline he was definitely rather keen after the offer was made by Thain. I really don’t know. I suppose Merrill who specialized in retail clients would’ve been a better fit with Nation’s Bank than say J.P. Morgan whose clients are institutional. The impulse likely would’ve emerged after the change in regulations removing the wall between commercial banks other types of financial institutions.