Lehman CEO could be the next to fall

The Observer reports that Lehman Bros. (NYSE: LEH) CEO Richard Fuld could be out of a job by the end of the year. The Observer states that "Whether a Lehman suitor emerges or not, well-placed sources within the bank are certain that Fuld is set to hand over the reins before the end of the year. 'He is involved less and less with day-to-day executive affairs, and his credibility is shot,' one senior Lehman source said."

The sources for the story are extraordinarily vague, and even if they are reasonably credible, it's hard to imagine who would be able to say with certainty that Fuld is on the way out.

It's not a difficult rumor to believe. The incredible part is that Fuld hasn't already been ushered out to a cushy retirement with a thoroughly undeserved severance package. The stock is off more than 80% in 2008, and Lehman's future as a stand-alone public company is very much in doubt.

While Fuld's firing would obviously be well-deserved, it's probably too late for it to matter one way or another. The distraction and expense of paying him to go away and finding someone else with nothing better to do than leap aboard a sinking ship makes it hard to say whether his departure would even do shareholders any good.