Bang. Right between the eyes.
Federal district Judge Jed S. Rakoff is not fooling around. In throwing out the $33m. non-disclosure deal between the feds and Bank of America over bonus money paid to Merrill Lynch execs Rakoff spared no one. The settlement “does not comport with the most elementary notions of justice and morality,” he wrote.
More: “It is quite something else for the very management that is accused of having lied to its shareholders to determine how much of those victims’ money should be used to make the case against the management go away.”
In other words, Judge Rakoff wants the SEC to hold BofA execs personally responsible for the decisions they made. This is precisely the line NY AG Andrew Cuomo has been taking as well in his dealings with BofA.
As a result, I am beginning to think that both Ken Lewis and likely successor Brian Moynihan will have to leave the bank before the feds step off.
Update: Rumors circulating now that Cuomo will indict someone soon.