Bank of America CEO Search Finds Outsiders Uninterested

Of course there are several internal candidates who would happily replace Lewis. Chief Risk Officer Gregory Curl and Brian Moynihan, head of consumer and small business banking, are thought to be the top choices. But that idea has become ever less popular as shareholders urge the board to choose a replacement with no ties to the Merrill Lynch deal, who can inject new life into the depleted and dispirited bank.

But Kelly isn't the only best-in-breed banker to turn down the top job offer at BofA. The board reportedly extended its deadline to find a replacement due to a dearth of interested outside candidates.

Former Bear Stearns CEO Alan Schwartz is among those reportedly approached who turned down the job, as did MasterCard (MA) President Ajay Banga. Others may include Moffett; Charlie Scharf, who runs JPMorgan Chase's (JPM) retail operations; Robert Kaplan, a former Goldman Sachs (GS) top gun; former US Bancorp (USB) CEO Jerry Grundhofer; American Express (AXP) President Alfred Kelly; and two former BofA executives, Al de Molina, who runs GMAC, and James Hance. Feelers were reportedly put out to those banking chieftains, among others.

Even those on BofA's board who have a breadth of experience in the banking world demurred when offered the CEO spot on a temporary basis until a more permanent replacement could be groomed.

Kelly would be a natural choice, because he spent years in top roles at other mammoth commercial banking institutions, first at Canada's Toronto Dominion (TD), then at Wachovia, leaving right before the bank escalated its nose dive into subprime lending by acquiring Golden West. (Wachovia, in turn, was acquired last year by Wells Fargo (WFC), which is still dealing with the fallout from its toxic loan book.)

Kelly may have also been able to bridge the divide between the Southern-East Coast cultural rift within Bank of America. He has spent several years in BofA's hometown of Charlotte, N.C., as Wachovia's finance chief, and is also familiar with the New York banking world in his current role. But he's apparently happier at New York-based Bank of New York Mellon, a different breed of bank, but one with a strong reputation and far fewer problems to deal with than BofA.

Unfortunately for the board, which has less than 60 days to name a replacement, there ain't no love in the heart of Charlotte anymore.

-- Written by Lauren Tara LaCapra in New York

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