Rick Rothacker went out and roped up an impressive number of sources to talk about Ken Thompson, but the lens through which they view the ousted Wachovia CEO is warped. First the very premise.
Thompson’s fall was not swift. It was about two quarters too slow by reasonable Wall St. standards. There were warning signs from the very beginning about a lack of visibility into the Golden West deal, signs Thompson’s team did not heed.
Second, there was no personal betrayal involved. When Thompson’s friend Cameron Harris suggests that Wachovia’s board “turned on” Thompson he is way out of line. The board literally had no choice. Shareholders were in revolt and the stock price in threat of going into freefall. Personally, I’m convinced the board and remaining Wachovia execs believe that should the share price fall to $20 per, someone out there makes a takeover play for the bank.
In any event, arresting the slide in the company’s position on Wall Street required Thompson’s departure. He should have known that. Deep down, Ken Thompson probably does.
Bonus Observation: Want some bank-shot upside? Try Pat McCrory. I think that Thompson’s close relationship with Mike Easley consciously or unconsciously blocked McCrory from slamming the corruption of the Easley years as hard as the facts merit. McCrory crossing streams with major Uptown player like Thompson is just not his style. Let’s see if the change at the top of a hometown bank frees up the mayor’s campaign for governor a bit.
