BofA Faces Pressure To Split Top Roles
目前，要求美国银行(Bank of America Corp.)董事长和首席执行长职位分别由两人担任的压力正在加大。大型股东代理权顾问公司Proxy Governance周四建议股东，在美国银行4月29日在位于北卡罗来纳州夏洛特总部举行的年度股东大会上，对分拆董事长和首席执行长职务的提议投赞成票。Proxy Governance说，董事长和首席执行长职务由不同的人分担有利于股东利益。据代理权顾问公司RiskMetrics Group Inc.透露，在去年的股东大会上，类似提议获得了37.6%的赞成票。而据一位对公司不满的股东透露，美国银行正在为投票万一通过后的有关事情做准备。投资家芬格(Jerry Finger)周四在接受采访时说，他预计首席董事斯隆(Temple Sloan)将取代刘易斯的职位。斯隆在北卡罗来纳州经营一家汽车零部件销售公司。芬格控制着美国银行150万股股票，今年初他曾起诉美国银行。芬格说，斯隆3月份在休斯顿的一次会议期间告诉了他这些计划。据芬格透露，斯隆在3月份的那次会议期间曾说，如果这个约束性动议获得通过，我将成为董事长，得在夏洛特的美国银行总部拥有一间办公室。芬格控制着美国银行不到0.02%流通股。不过，美国银行发言人斯蒂克勒(Robert Stickler)说，斯隆否认曾有过任何像那样的谈话，斯隆从没说过他想做董事长。另一位了解会议情况的人说，斯隆没有对芬格说过他即将成为下任董事长或这件事情正在考虑当中。这位人士说，斯隆反而提到了他认为职责分担不是好主意的原因，指出如果一位不担任行政职务的董事长和其他管理人士一起在总部安排办公室，则有可能滋生内部冲突。此外，这位人士说，董事会尚未讨论如果投票结果不遂公司所愿，将由谁接替刘易斯担任董事长。如果提议获得通过，董事会将“在时机到来时解决这个问题。”失去董事长宝座对刘易斯来说将是个打击。眼下他承受着巨大的压力，他需要向外界表明他能带领这家美国资产规模最大的银行度过危机。他曾对董事会成员表示，他打算留任首席执行长一职，至少到危机过去，至多留任3年。刘易斯上周满62岁。最近他在接受电视采访时表示，他对这件事的心情很矛盾：他认为董事长和首席执行长职位分开未必是件坏事，但也未必是好事。有关美国银行将董事长和首席执行长职位分开的提议是有工会组织Service Employees International Union发起的。美国银行的斯蒂克勒说，如果股东们充分表态，很可能我们将听从他们的意愿。但我们十分相信，这不是一个正确的做法，我们也在跟大股东联系，告诉他们这一点，并试图说服他们接受我们的立场。Dan Fitzpatrick / Joann S. Lublin相关阅读美国银行压力测试也考验美国政府 2009-04-16美国银行业能否再现高盛业绩惊喜？ 2009-04-14美国企业怕负债 银行难放贷 2009-04-08 本文涉及股票或公司document.write (truthmeter('2009年04月17日11:55', 'BAC'));美国银行英文名称：Bank of America Co.总部地点：美国上市地点：纽约证交所股票代码：BAC
Pressure is building for the possible separation of the chairman and chief-executive roles at Bank of America Corp.A major proxy-advisory firm on Thursday recommended shareholders approve the split at the bank's April 29 annual meeting in Charlotte, N.C. Proxy Governance said Bank of America's shareholders would be better off with separate chairman and CEO roles.A similar resolution won support from 37.6% of votes cast at last year's annual meeting, according to proxy advisers RiskMetrics Group Inc.According to one dissident shareholder, Bank of America is preparing for the possibility that the vote won't go its way.Investor Jerry Finger said Thursday in an interview that he expects lead director Temple Sloan, who runs a Raleigh, N.C.-based automotive-parts distributor, to take Mr. Lewis's place.Mr. Finger, who controls about 1.5 million Bank of America shares and filed a lawsuit against the company earlier this year, said Mr. Sloan informed him of those plans at a March meeting in Houston.If the binding resolution passes, 'I'll become the chairman and I'll have to have an office' at the bank's Charlotte, N.C., headquarters, Mr. Sloan said during the March meeting, according to Mr. Finger, who controls less than .02% of the shares outstanding.Mr. Sloan, however, 'denied that anything like that conversation occurred,' said Bank of America spokesman Robert Stickler. Mr. Sloan 'never said he wanted to be chairman.'Another person familiar with the meeting said the lead director didn't tell Mr. Finger that he was in line to become the next chairman or that such a move was under consideration.Mr. Sloan instead outlined why he thought the split would be a bad idea, this person said, noting that internal conflicts can develop if a nonexecutive chairman is appointed an office alongside other executives at headquarters.In addition, the board hasn't yet discussed who would succeed Mr. Lewis as chairman if the vote doesn't go the company's way, this person said. If the proposal passes, the board will 'deal with it when the time comes.'Losing the chairman's seat would be a blow to Mr. Lewis, who is under pressure to show that he can lead the nation's largest bank by assets through the current crisis.He has told board members he intends to remain as CEO until this crisis is over at the earliest and three years at the latest.Mr. Lewis, who turned 62 last week, said in a recent TV interview that he has mixed thoughts on the subject: 'I don't think the breakup of the chairman and the CEO is necessarily a bad thing, but I don't think it's a good thing necessarily, either.'The separate chairmanship proposal is sponsored by the Service Employees International Union.'If the shareholders spoke clearly, chances are we would follow what they want to do,' Bank of America's Mr. Stickler said. But 'we believe strongly this is not the right move to make and we are communicating with large shareholders and telling them that and trying to convince them of our position.'Dan Fitzpatrick / Joann S. Lublin
Pressure is building for the possible separation of the chairman and chief-executive roles at Bank of America Corp.A major proxy-advisory firm on Thursday recommended shareholders approve the split at the bank's April 29 annual meeting in Charlotte, N.C. Proxy Governance said Bank of America's shareholders would be better off with separate chairman and CEO roles.A similar resolution won support from 37.6% of votes cast at last year's annual meeting, according to proxy advisers RiskMetrics Group Inc.According to one dissident shareholder, Bank of America is preparing for the possibility that the vote won't go its way.Investor Jerry Finger said Thursday in an interview that he expects lead director Temple Sloan, who runs a Raleigh, N.C.-based automotive-parts distributor, to take Mr. Lewis's place.Mr. Finger, who controls about 1.5 million Bank of America shares and filed a lawsuit against the company earlier this year, said Mr. Sloan informed him of those plans at a March meeting in Houston.If the binding resolution passes, 'I'll become the chairman and I'll have to have an office' at the bank's Charlotte, N.C., headquarters, Mr. Sloan said during the March meeting, according to Mr. Finger, who controls less than .02% of the shares outstanding.Mr. Sloan, however, 'denied that anything like that conversation occurred,' said Bank of America spokesman Robert Stickler. Mr. Sloan 'never said he wanted to be chairman.'Another person familiar with the meeting said the lead director didn't tell Mr. Finger that he was in line to become the next chairman or that such a move was under consideration.Mr. Sloan instead outlined why he thought the split would be a bad idea, this person said, noting that internal conflicts can develop if a nonexecutive chairman is appointed an office alongside other executives at headquarters.In addition, the board hasn't yet discussed who would succeed Mr. Lewis as chairman if the vote doesn't go the company's way, this person said. If the proposal passes, the board will 'deal with it when the time comes.'Losing the chairman's seat would be a blow to Mr. Lewis, who is under pressure to show that he can lead the nation's largest bank by assets through the current crisis.He has told board members he intends to remain as CEO until this crisis is over at the earliest and three years at the latest.Mr. Lewis, who turned 62 last week, said in a recent TV interview that he has mixed thoughts on the subject: 'I don't think the breakup of the chairman and the CEO is necessarily a bad thing, but I don't think it's a good thing necessarily, either.'The separate chairmanship proposal is sponsored by the Service Employees International Union.'If the shareholders spoke clearly, chances are we would follow what they want to do,' Bank of America's Mr. Stickler said. But 'we believe strongly this is not the right move to make and we are communicating with large shareholders and telling them that and trying to convince them of our position.'Dan Fitzpatrick / Joann S. Lublin