Bear Stearns finally booting James Cayne

The New York Times reports that an announcement is imminent that The Bear Stearns Companies (NYSE: BSC) has finally decided to boot its CEO James Cayne. Cayne played bridge while Bear burned -- and allegedly smoked pot -- but since he took over in July 1993, Bear's stock has risen 377% from $16 to $76.25.

Cayne oversaw a raft of problems. There's the billions in write-downs related to subprime, the failed hedge funds, the SEC investigation of how withdrawals from those funds were handled. But Cayne also got cash injections from Joseph Lewis, a Bahamas-based billionaire who now owns just under 10 percent of the firm, and Chinese investment bank Citic Securities, which will have a six percent stake.

Alan Schwartz will take over the CEO role while Cayne will remain Bear's chairman. The Times describes Schwartz as, "A smooth, discreet investment banker who has been with Bear since 1976, Mr. Schwartz, 57, is highly regarded inside the firm and out. While he may not have any direct experience with Bear's giant bond business, his youth and ability to charm top corporate clients provide a stark contrast to Mr. Cayne, who travels infrequently and is not known to spend large amounts of time courting clients."

For investors, it remains to be seen whether Schwartz can get to the bottoms of Bear's woes and revive profit growth. But I am impressed that -- unlike its peers -- Bear was able to replace its CEO with an internal executive who knows the company.

Peter Cohan is president of Peter S. Cohan & Associates. He also teaches management at Babson College and edits The Cohan Letter. He has no financial interest in Bear Stearns securities.