Thain to Leave BofA After Record Losses

Fired Merill CEO tries to 'set the record straight' about $3.6B payout

(NEWSER) - In his first lengthy interview since being pushed out as CEO of Merrill Lynch, John Thain tells the Wall Street Journal that Bank of America—which acquired Merrill in September—is lying about its involvement in the $3.6 billion in bonus payouts that made Thain the poster boy for corporate greed. “Getting fired is one thing,” Thain said. “But nobody has the right to say things that they know aren't true.” More»

(NEWSER) - John Thain may have lost his job running Merrill Lynch, but woe to the CEO who dared merge with him, the Economist reports. Thain no doubt trashed his reputation by failing to tell BofA chief Ken Lewis about looming losses—and handing out multimillion-dollar bonuses in the meantime—but Lewis, who booted Thain this week, appears reckless for ever approving the Merrill merger. More»

Spendthrift John Thain gets hands on new troubled company

(NEWSER) - The CEO who spent $1.2 million renovating his office and arranged $3.6 billion in executive bonuses while his company, Merrill Lynch, was circling the toilet bowl, has just been named CEO of CIT Group. John Thain rises to the top of a public company again a year after he was jettisoned by Bank of America after it acquired Merrill Lynch. Thain inherits a firm struggling since former Merrill colleague and ex-CEO Jeffrey Peek immersed the company in subprime mortage lending before its bankruptcy. More»

Former Merrill Lynch CEO denies accelerating bonuses

(NEWSER) - Merrill Lynch's former CEO issued an apology of sorts for spending $1.2 million—including $35,000 for a commode—to redecorate his office as the firm bottomed out, Bloomberg reports. “We decorated it in the style that Merrill Lynch offices were, which was very, very nice,” John Thain said at Wharton. “That was a mistake, and I'm sorry." The punchline, delivered to laughter: "If I had that to do over again, I’d furnish it in Ikea.” More»

Private bonus agreement backs up Thain's claim that Bank of America was aware of payouts

(NEWSER) - Ousted Merrill Lynch boss John Thain appears to have been speaking the truth when he said Bank of America knew all about Merrill's controversial December bonuses, the Wall Street Journal reports. A copy of a private bonus agreement obtained by the Journal shows that the two firms agreed on a combined bonus pool of $5.8 billion ahead of the bailout-funded takeover. More»