The Deal spoke this morning with some fractional owners of Bank of Amerillwide, on the topic of Ken Lewis never telling them about the metric asston of losses Merrill was about to report, prior to acquiring the company, because Paulson or Bernanke or Pernanke threatened him. Among the responses: “Brute!” “Pig” “Pussy!” “Lying sack of shit!” “Worthless backpack of dicks!” “Guy whose clothes are about to be thrown out the window and whose key will no longer work once I have the locks changed!” No, not really (though they haven’t spoken to everyone and surely that’s what at least a few people, Mrs. Lewis included, are thinking). Some actual thoughts on the matter:
“He violated his duty to protect shareholders in order to protect himself, and now shareholders are shouldering the burden of those consequences,” CtW Investment Group’s Michael Garland told Dealscape.
“Seems like Ken Lewis has changed his story. Previously Mr. Lewis has stated unambiguously that Bank of America was not aware of the losses at Merrill Lynch until after the Dec. 5 shareholder vote. Now he states differently. I think this will certainly strengthen our lawsuit,” Jonathan Finger of Finger Interests Number One Ltd. told Dealscape.
Lewis is such a fucking loser
Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey hey GOODBYE!!!
Paulson threatening to nuke BofA thru a regulatory circle jerk qualifies as a legitimate threat, defensible from KL’s perspective completing the ML buy. The liability to shareholders lies with Treasury. But good luck collecting on it…
@3- did paulson threaten to nuke BAC, or just Lewis? I think it was only the latter.
Quick question: how many hotel-bar bottles of Jack has KL consumed since dropping this bomb on his shareholders?
@3: you’re nuts. KL could easily have gone to the Board and offered his resignation rather than do something not in shareholder interests. But he didn’t because he thought he could tap-dance and lie and save his job and reputation (and pension). So blame the gov’t all you want (and they do share some), but it’s Lewis who did not act as a fiduciary.
@5- It’s Boone’s, not Jack. Get it right.
@7- did you mean to direct that to @2?
I love it when Bess writes about fingers.
@9- I don’t get it.
@6 – couple of large shareholders, Dick Spangler included, directed KL to proceed. Spangler in particular lost >$1 billion. So a fucked up BofA business judgment, I’ll grant you that…
@11 read the last sentance of the story and look at the picture you dumbass. its not funny but i think thats the refrence 9 was making.
@11 – Yes you do.
@13- bess didn’t write that. notice it was in a quote box?
I would have had the balls to call the bluff nad really see if Hank/Ben would have cleaned out a CEO and full board.
As a matter of national policy, we should just allow the BAC shareholders to be wiped out and allow the debt holders to own the bank. The BAC shareholder have to be the pissiest bunch of whiners out there. Bitchslap them into bankruptcy so they have something to whine about.
In a situation where few good options existed, management exercised reasonable judgment and, of course, BAC shareholders are outraged. Screw ‘em.
I love it when fingers is a point of contention.
Chuck Norris doesn’t have AIDS but he gives it to people anyway.
I’m introducing a resolution at the next shareholders meeting to clawback all spirit points accrued by Lewis since the CFC acquisition.
-Middle Digit Investments
I despise lawyers trying to make something out of nothing (since KL, under threat of ass-rape from Cuomo, said the shitty news came in the last half of the month, def. not before the 5th), i.e., almost all lawyers.
Speaking of, who’s the douchebag Yalie who says that this is just “Bernanke’s short term political interests”? And if he taught at Chicago, did Law and Economics ever trouble his mind? http://blogs.wsj.com/deals/2009/04/23/are-ken-lewis-ben-bernanke-and-hank-paulson-heroes-or-goats/
The KL problem bears superficial resemblance to the cause of externalities being so great that a private actor will swallow the loss because his fraction of the externality (fin mkts shitting themselves) is more painful than swallowing Merrill, razorblades and all. Who knew that Coase is actually useful…
Anonymeee, he wasn’t feeling well after the whole pharmacy crisis a million years ago.
5 here- Boone’s comes in a fun-size? I suppose he could have a few of their finest boxes stashed in his mini-fridge for just such an occassion.
I think KL should lose the red tie and pick out one of Angelo’s yellow ones. The karma might rub off and we know that Angelo ooozed of good karma.
@5/23- as previously made up by me, the good people at the Boone’s factory package that shit in mini-bottles specially for Lewis, to consume discreetly during business hours.
You losers must have something to gain by downing Lewis. Here is a man who
acted as I suspect any thinking person would when faced with the prospect of of a financial melt down for the country. I would hope some of you would
consider where you might be now if
Merrill was allowed to fail and the
and the whole financial system had
ceased to function.
I want to hear from you when Merrill, Countrywide along with BAC start
throwing off tremendous amounts of income and BAC is back on top.
@26 “back on top”? Was it ever?
Dear BAC shareholder,
This train wreck went from 40 to 26 on the day of the merger announcement to 15 on the day of the vote. Crying about the last 7 points seems a little overdone. At some point you gotta put a little blame on the man in the mirror.
Suck it,
- Mr. Lewis
@ 26.
There is a better chance of george clooney being on top of me than there every is of BAC being on top of anything.
Maybe when the governement inducded short squeeze comes (you know when they convert thier prefs to common (see C or an example of how that happens)) they will have a couple of days in the sun.
Fucking break up the banks already.
Wall street has become a soap opera with really ugly actors.
Put glass steagal back into place and regulate the merger activity.
And kill yourselves on the way out.
Merrill should have been allowed to fail, and the entire army of managers their should have had every penny clawed back for the last 5 years and then been carted off to jail.
Merrill should have been allowed to fail, and the entire army of managers there should have had every penny clawed back for the last 5 years and then been carted off to jail.
Get a life, Obama-bum-kissers. This is such a non-story. Do we bother you while you pass food through the drive-up windows or smoke your dope in the parking lots of your little community colleges before your classes ? Go back to sleep before we kick you out of your Mom’s zero equity warehouse she calls her condo. If you ever meet your biological father, ask him how the world works. Love ya, Jenn