by Katherine Doherty
Brian Moynihan said he’s staying put as chief executive officer of Bank of America Corp. unless the board decides otherwise.
“The board will make a choice at some point,” Moynihan said Tuesday in an interview with Bloomberg TV at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. “I’m not going anywhere unless they throw me out.”
Moynihan, 65, started his 15th year as CEO of Bank of America this month. He is one of the longest standing US bank executives, having stepped into the role in 2010 during the financial crisis, later leading the lender through the Covid-19 pandemic and the regional banking crisis.
His response to questions about succession follow several high-profile moves by Bank of America’s competitors affecting potential new leaders across Wall Street. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. earlier Tuesday announced a raft of management changes that lifted several executives into roles overseeing key businesses. JPMorgan Chase & Co. announced several moves last week that shuffled the roles of potential successors to CEO Jamie Dimon.
“One of the biggest jobs I have is preparing people for what it will be like to run this company out there,” Moynihan said. “So we do a lot with our team to get them used to experiences, get them to learn about the trade-offs you have to make at the top of the house.”
Even though the bank doesn’t say publicly who is potential CEO material, there is preparation underway, Moynihan said.
“Every six months we go through everything, who the immediate successor for every one of teammates’ jobs,” he said. “We have a slate.”
In a wide-ranging interview, Moynihan also said advancements in artificial intelligence and automation help keep expenses and headcount in check.
“We run the company on a nominal amount of expenses as we did 10 years ago, not inflation-adjusted,” he said. “I think AI keeps going. If we are good, we will keep adjusting where the teammates end up,” and unemployment levels will stay “relatively set” at the company.
Last week, Bank of America, the second-largest US bank, reported $27.1 billion of net income for 2024, up 2.3% from the prior year. The firm is focused on increasing its revenue while also investing in the franchise, spending more on people and technology including artificial intelligence.
Moynihan echoed many of his peers in saying his bank is preparing for a flurry of dealmaking to take place in the coming years. Newly installed President Donald Trump is expected to usher in a more business-friendly regulatory environment in the US.
“What you’re hearing is enthusiasm for — in the investment banking side particularly — transactions, for the last couple years it’s been hard to get a transaction through,” Moynihan said. “There’s a lot of enthusiasm by the bankers saying, ‘These deals can get done so I can go have this strategic conversation.’”
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