Bank of America announces new CFO, technology and legal heads in sweeping management overhaul

Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan announced the most sweeping management overhaul of his 12-year tenure atop the giant financial institution.

In a memo distributed to employees on Friday, Moynihan named a new chief financial officer, technology head, general counsel and chief administrative officer. The firm’s management team added five new members, he said.

“These changes position the company with highly energized leaders who are committed to driving responsible growth through its second decade,” Moynihan, 61, said in the memo. “As I shared with our board of directors, it will continue to be my privilege to serve with them as CEO.”

The moves solidify Moynihan’s position leading Bank of America, the second-biggest U.S. bank by assets. Moynihan took over in 2010, stumbling at first with the gargantuan task of cleaning up the mess left by his predecessor’s acquisition of mortgage lender Countrywide Financial in the depths of the financial crisis. He has since steadied the ship, cutting costs and improving returns.

The overhaul comes weeks after the firm announced the departure of Chief Operating Officer Tom Montag, who was widely considered the leading candidate to succeed Moynihan if needed. There is no imminent need to appoint another COO, according to a person with knowledge of the company.

Instead, several division heads who once reported to Montag will now report directly to Moynihan. That includes Jim DeMare, who continues in his role as head of the firm’s global trading business, and Matthew Koder, who remains head of the global corporate and investment banking division.

These are the biggest changes in Moynihan’s 2,249-word memo:

• Alastair Borthwick, a former Goldman Sachs executive who most recently ran global commercial banking, will succeed Paul Donofrio as CFO in the fourth quarter. Donofrio, who served six years as CFO, will become the bank’s vice chair and oversee its sustainable finance efforts.
• Aditya Bhasin has been named chief technology and information officer and Tom Scrivener has been named chief operations executive; the two will succeed Cathy Bessant, who served as chief technology officer for more than 12 years. Bessant will relocate to Paris to become the bank’s vice chair of global strategy.
• Lauren Mogensen was promoted to global general counsel, succeeding David Leitch, who is retiring next year. Mogensen had previously been the bank’s head of global compliance and operational risk.
• D. Steve Boland has been named chief administrative officer, succeeding Andrea Smith, who is retiring after 34 years at the bank.

The five new management team members are Bhasin, Scrivener, Mogensen and two executives who report to consumer banking head Dean Athanasia. They are Holly O’Neill, newly appointed president of retail banking, and Wendy Stewart, head of global commercial banking.

Internally, Athanasia, Borthwick and Boland are seen as among contenders for future CEO, according to the person with knowledge of the company who declined to be identified speaking about personnel matters.

But Moynihan has publicly said he wants to serve for as long as he can and admired Warren Buffett’s long tenure atop Berkshire Hathaway.