Bank of America (BAC) is a pretty big player in its industry; it's got brand equity -- everyone has heard of it. How is its stock looking these days?

At the time of writing, shares could be had for $13.44. The 52-week low for the company is $10.91; the 52-week high is $19.86. That's a tight range, and as one might imagine, this company has been a vehicle for traders trying to ride whatever volatility is available at any given time.

The Securities & Exchange Commission filed new charges against Bank of America (BAC) today, accusing the company of hiding "staggering financial losses" at Merrill Lynch prior to the consummation of the merger between the two companies.

The Associated Press has details, but there are a few interesting things about this latest development:

• Current Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan was the general counsel of Bank of America at the time of the alleged disclosure improprieties. Just saying.

The markets got off to a strong start for 2010. The Institute of Supply Management reported stronger manufacturing gains in December, and that just added gravy on top of what had already been strength from overseas markets. The November construction spending was down 0.6% in November, but there may be more seasonality with that than what was seen before. Major European markets were all up over 1.5% to kick off 2010 while Asian markets were mixed to slightly higher.

Dow 10,583.96 +155.91 (1.50%)
S&P 500 1,132.99 +17.89 (1.60%)
Nasdaq 2,308.42 +39.27 (1.73%)

Top Analyst Upgrades/Downgrades
Top DJIA Stock Picks for 2010

TheStreet.com's Jim Cramer says his conservative approach is just what this bank needs.

I like Brian Moynihan. I have wanted him from the get-go. Not because he is a lawyer -- that hasn't been much of a boost for others in banking (sorry Chuck Prince!). And not because he is an insider, although I think learning this story would be darned hard for an outsider.

I've liked him because he is from Fleet, the part of Bank of America (BAC) (Cramer's Take) from New England; Fleet is the least risky, most conservative portion of the bank. Fleet was a bank I loved. It gave you an amazing return and did it in a simple, conservative way: good banking.

After previously announcing that he would leave the CEO post in December, Bank of America (BAC) head Ken Lewis is backpedaling in light of the company's difficulty in finding a replacement.

The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) reports that Mr. Lewis "has said he would consider postponing his retirement if directors need more time to find a successor or smooth the transition to the next CEO, according to a person close to him."

And now we're back with more from the "Who the hell cares what he thinks?" file:

Former Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) lead director Temple Sloan tells Bloomberg that the company should pick an insider from Bank of America to be its next CEO -- because an outsider wouldn't be familiar with how the company (doesn't) work. He supports handing the job to Brian Moynihan, consumer banking head, or Barbara Desoer, who runs home loans and insurance.

Interesting ideas! Why isn't Mr. Sloan still on the board of directors?

The Bank of America (BAC) travesty of corporate governance continues to grow increasingly tragicomic.

A quick recap: Bank of America's board of directors took way too long to kick CEO Ken Lewis to the curb and now it can't pick a successor because of infighting. Meanwhile, the board and the company's executives -- including those who are being considered for the CEO job -- have made such a mess of the whole thing that no one who isn't already part of the company will consider taking the job.

Charlie Gasparino of CNBC reports:

TheStreet.com's Jim Cramer says Brian Moynihan's job running BofA's consumer banking unit makes him the odds-on favorite.

My bet: Brian Moynihan. That's who I would appoint to be the head of Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) (Cramer's Take).

When all is said and done, Bank of America must become the best consumer bank in America in order to make the acquisitions work, and Moynihan's job, his experience running consumer banking, to me makes him the odds-on favorite.