How About a Bank of America, GMAC Merger?

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- It would be an easy solution to a lot of problems.

Bank of America(BAC) is searching for a new chief executive officer. Al de Molina, a former Bank of America executive and current GMAC CEO, is on the short list -- or off, depending on the latest speculation. Why not bring the two bailout corporations together in a marriage of convenience?

Both companies are in massive debt to the U.S. Treasury. Bank of America received $45 billion, and GMAC has gotten $13.4 billion to date.

GMAC is looking for additional capital to meet the Treasury's requirements, which include maintaining a 15% total risk-based capital ratio for three years, far higher than that for a regular bank. It also needs access to liquidity, such as the recently announced $2.9 billion raised through a bond issue backed under the FDIC's Temporary Liquidity Guarantee Program.

GMAC may potentially need an additional $5.6 billion by Nov. 9. If the value of GMAC's assets has improved since bank "stress tests" results were released in May, as is likely, a smaller amount could satisfy the requirements.

Despite complaints about favoritism over bankruptcy treatment, GMAC is more than twice as big as CIT Group(CIT), the commercial lender that filed for bankruptcy Nov. 1 after a U.S. bailout and debt-exchange offer failed. GMAC, which has a $181 billion balance sheet, is supporting the hopes and fears of thousands of General Motors(MTLQQ) and Chrysler dealerships. To abandon GMAC would be irrational, even if you didn't support the bailout of the carmakers.