Analyst calls Ken Lewis 'phenomenally good'

Posted Oct 1st 2009 5:00PM by Zac Bissonnette
Filed under: Bank of America (BAC)

Most observers have been shocked by how long Ken Lewis was able to hold onto his job as CEO of Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) as long as he was.

But not Rochdale Securities analyst Dick Bove, who told CNBC that "The guy has been phenomenally good... to push him out now because of a witch hunt is totally inappropriate."

Are we talking about the same Ken Lewis? Let's go through a quick list of Lewis' phenomenal accomplishments:

Took one of the most powerful banks in the United States and brought it to the brink of bankruptcy, where it was saved only by an unprecedented case of taxpayer largesse.
Engineered an acquisition that led to the destruction of shareholder value and SEC and FBI investigations, along with numerous shareholder lawsuits.
Was branded an "ironic hero" by none other than Warren Buffett. Colin Barr chimed in that he was the "Mr. Magoo of global finance."

There's certainly an argument to be made that Ken Lewis is a victim of circumstances beyond his control. And you could even say that he is a victim of a populist-minded witch hunt.

But Ken Lewis was only phenomenally good at one thing: keeping his job for a lot longer than most people thought he would. And now he can't even brag about that.

Tags: colin barr, ColinBarr, ken lewis, KenLewis, mr. magoo, Mr.Magoo, warren buffett, WarrenBuffett