BofA's Moynihan Will Come Out Bruised In Shareholder Vote - Expert

Bank of America (BAC) CEO Brian Moynihan will soon find out whether he can keep his title of chairman, as shareholders vote Tuesday to decide that issue. It will be a critical test for the executive, according to one governance expert. 'It seems like the board threw him under the bus and he's going to come out bruised,' said Michael Pryce-Jones, Governance Director at the CtW Investment Group. 'Nothing is going to come of this for the better for Brian Moynihan,' he added. CtW Investment Group works with pension funds that invest on behalf of labor unions, and is urging shareholders to reject a combined CEO and chairman role at Bank of America. Pryce-Jones points out that Bank of America faces huge challenges and continues to lag behind its peers. 'This company still has to show sustainable revenue growth, sustainable profitability, and it faces a lot of strategic challenges which really need a kind of board which can ask the tough questions,' declared Pryce-Jones. 'We've had shareholders who have called for the break-up of the bank, and it's impossible to have that discussion in a frank way without a board which is independent, and that independence comes from the top,’ he added. Pryce-Jones also pointed out that even at JP Morgan (JPM), which has been a solid performer, there have been concerns about a dual CEO/Chairman role for Jamie Dimon.

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