Board's consumer confidence index hit an all-time low in January-and remember, that survey was taken before fan. 26.rnKen Lewis may feel like he dodged a bullet, as the Bank of America board expressed support for him after its Jan. 28 meeting. But enraged shareholders continued to question whether the CEO knew what he was doing when he agreed to buy Merrill Lynch last September. Merrill, it turns out, had many billions more losses festering than it appeared at the time-losses that forced Lewis to go back to Washington for a second helping of financial aid. Then came the public-relations disasters: news that Merrill paid out $4 billion in bonuses just before the takeover closed, and that Merrill Chief John Thain spent $1.2 million redecorating his office in the midst of last year's crash. Thain resigned on Jan. 22, but a number of shareholder lawsuits have been filed against Bof A, and critics are saying Lewis' days at the helm arernnumbered.
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