Chairman Wells
SunTrust Banks Inc.'s CEO, Jim Wells, took the chairmanship this week at the Atlanta Committee for Progress, a business group that advises Mayor Shirley Franklin."This city is having a difficult time, as well as the rest of the country," Mr. Wells said during the committee's quarterly meeting Monday, the Atlanta Business Chronicle reported online. "Anything I can do to be helpful in this environment, I'm happy to do."
Mr. Wells also cited the bleak economy a day later, when SunTrust requested additional capital from the Treasury Department's Troubled Asset Relief Program.
Bah, Humbug
Chuck Prince, the former Citigroup Inc. chief executive, may be long gone, but that has not stopped some critics from resurrecting his tarnished record.Co-op America Foundation Inc., a Washington group that advocates for a "green" economy and corporate responsibility, released its annual "worst corporate Scrooges" list Thursday, putting Mr. Prince at the top.
More than any other CEO, Mr. Prince shoulders blame for "wrecking our economy," Co-op America said.
Though he was ousted in November of last year, the decisions to take excessive risks on mortgages and investments that have hobbled Citi were made under his watch, the group said, and since his financial company is one of the nation's largest, the poor decisions have fueled the broader recession.
Citi has posted losses for the last four quarters.
To make its list, Co-op America said, a CEO "had to have had a decidedly negative impact in 2008, a year in which the greed of corporate managers helped created a severe downward economic spiral." Other top Scrooges include Rick Wagoner, the chairman and CEO of General Motors Corp.
American Banker could not reach Mr. Prince for comment Thursday.
Moynihan on Panel
Bank of America Corp. chose Brian Moynihan as its general counsel this week and gave the role more clout.Marking a departure from the past, B of A said Wednesday that as the company's top legal counsel, Mr. Moynihan would join its executive management committee and report directly to Ken Lewis, the Charlotte company's chairman, president, and CEO.
Mr. Moynihan, 49, joined B of A in 2004, when it bought FleetBoston Financial Corp., where he had been the deputy general counsel. He has been B of A's president of global corporate and investment banking since October of last year but will relinquish that post when B of A purchases Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc. this month. John Thain, Merrill's CEO, is set to manage the investment bank.
