BoFA: More mess coming up ?

[GoFlyKiteNow]

More mess coming up !
06 Feb 2010

Ken Lewis: If I’m Going Down, Hank Paulson and Ben Bernanke Are Coming Down With Me

http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2010/02/ken_lewis_already_relishing_th.html

No WAY is Bank of America CEO Ken Lewis going to be the only one to answer for the acquisition of crappy Merrill Lynch and its crappy bonuses, "a person close to Lewis's defense team" (who may or may not be Ken Lewis himself) tells Charlie Gasparino today on the Daily Beast. NO WAY will he be a scapegoat, alone, for the people who twisted his arm to go through with the Merrill deal by telling him he would be fired if he didn't.

"If this thing goes to trial you can expect both Paulson and Bernanke to be on the witness list." If he's going down, he's bringing them down, too. Bringing them down to Chinatown. Order in the court!

Read more: Ken Lewis: If I’m Going Down, Hank Paulson and Ben Bernanke Are Coming Down With Me -- Daily Intel http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2010/02/ken_lewis_already_relishing_th.html#ixzz0euY3UQsa

 

[GoFlyKiteNow]

Ken Lewis, Bank of America Sued by Cuomo for Fraud
February 04, 2010, 06:35 PM EST
More From Businessweek

By Karen Freifeld and David Scheer

Feb. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Former Bank of America Corp. Chief Executive Officer Kenneth Lewis was sued by New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo for defrauding investors and the government when buying Merrill Lynch & Co. The bank agreed to pay $150 million to settle a related lawsuit by U.S. regulators.

Cuomo also sued the bank’s former chief financial officer Joe Price and the bank itself for not disclosing about $16 billion in losses Merrill had incurred before it was bought by Bank of America in an effort to get the merger approved. Afterwards, Lewis demanded government bailout funds, Cuomo said.

“We believe the bank management understated the Merrill Lynch losses to shareholders, then they overstated their ability to terminate their agreement to secure $20 billion of TARP money, and that is just a fraud,” Cuomo said today at a telephone press conference. “Bank of America and its officials defrauded the government and the taxpayers at a very difficult time.”

Cuomo is pursuing individuals at the bank while the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has declined to do so. The suit is being filed under the Martin Act, a New York securities law that permits both civil and criminal penalties.

The $150 million SEC settlement still has to be approved by U.S. District Court Judge Jed Rakoff. Last year, Rakoff called the SEC’s initial settlement, which focused on the bank’s bonus disclosures, neither fair nor reasonable and questioned why the bank’s executives and lawyers weren’t sued. The agency said it lacked evidence to bring claims against specific individuals.

 

[longbow]

So far NO ONE has been held accountable! If US economy stays weak dirt will start flying.

Economy wise I am more concerned with the US then with China. With both Fed and US consumers up to eyeballs in debt and factor in the war, Us does not have many bullets left. 60% debt to GDP is ok for many but no good for a country whose currency is the reserve currency.

 

[zuoom]

sounds a little bit like last year situation where the bad news just keep rolling in.