Update Bank of America to Repay $45B

December 3, 2009

VIEW: A glimpse of the comeback for Ken Lewis and Bank of America since those dark days of winter 2008-2009.

Talk about a turnabout... Back then the experts, the analysis forecasted a new chapter for Wall Street and the banks; "the era that propelled Ken Lewis and Hank Paulson to the top of the financial world was over." (Right.)

Here's our full report, from which this clip was taken. And a related article on BofA's resurgence and another on Ken Lewis' possible successor.

6 Comments

COMMENTS

The fact that BoA is able to extricate itself out of the TARP so soon says more about their non=compliance to the federal mandates than about their fiscal agility. They have ignored their moral responsibility to adequately increase lending and used the capital to save their skins. Shameful.

L.E. Nielson / December 4, 2009 2:37 AM

BoA is a corrupt, greedy business that has preyed on the American consumer and has brought this country to its knees. They were given Tarp funds to start lending again, and what they did was the opposite. It is obvious that they did not need the money, as a matter of fact they used Tarp to make some more!. We need to be less talkers and more activists, because there is so much that the Government can do with these mega financial institutions. Do not take your business to BoA, do not accept their checks, do not buy their products or spent in any of their derivative businesses. Don't pay your credit card balance and walk away from your negative equity BoA and Wachovia mortgage. Let's run them out of town.

lullu / December 4, 2009 4:33 PM

We have able people who can help fix out financial problems. Why do we insist on staying with the likes of Geitner, Summers and Bernanke -- the old cronies of banking and Wall Street? The obvious answer is the powerful financial lobby that has taken over the decision-making process in Washington.

Let's bring in Simon Johnson, Sheila Baer and Brooksley Born -- people who have the experience and the moral integrity to do the job that so desperately needs to be done: purging the vested interests from the decision-making process in our government.

Danny Clarke / December 5, 2009 1:21 AM

Bringing in Simon Johnson, Sheila Baer, and Brooksley Born is change I can believe in.

Frank Schoenburg / December 6, 2009 8:58 PM

Sheila Baer, and Brooksley Born and Paul Volkner are the persons who can represent the best interest of the people, and not the bank management.
Volkner is most vocal about bringing back the GS bill that disallowed speculation with deposits.
The same sort of restrictions should apply to the premiums collected by insurance companies such as aig.
These deposits in the banks and premiums of the insurance companies are being gambled away with no cost to those who are gambling with this money and great gain if they win.
It si true that Geitner, and Summers, as well as the previous Paulson are very loyal to the wall street firms. They will become even more wealthy if those firms are protected and allowed to gamble,
They should be replaced with Sheila Baer, and Brooksley Born and Paul Volkner or his choice if he can't accept.
Otherwise, we haven't fixed the problem and it will be repeated.
W>R>Morgan at wrmorganmd.com

William Roy Morgan / December 9, 2009 2:18 AM

The ability of BoFA, Citi, and other banks to pay back TARP - thereby freeing them of compensation restrictions - is simply a function of the 0%, no strings, loans being substituted for TARP by the FED as of late. Huge profits (and bonuses) at Goldman Sachs are the result of GS's status as a bank which gives it access to 0% money. Think what you could do with a 0% loan from the US government (taxpayer) which, if push came to shove, you probably would not have to pay back since you are too big to fail.

So where is the trickle down? Try swinging 2% or even a 3% deal with the bank holding your mortgage.

Stephen Romero / December 11, 2009 1:01 PM

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Editors' Notes