SEC to rule on Bank of America-Merrill Lynch bonus gate

April 14, 2009 | By Jim Kim

Did Bank of America break the law by not telling shareholders about Merrill Lynch's decision to pay $3.6 billion in bonuses right before the deal was about to be voted on? The SEC is reviewing the matter, reports the Financial Times. The controversy has been raging for a while now.

Recall that Merrill's John Thain decided to move up the payment a month ahead of schedule, to right before the vote was to take place. Bank of America executives subsequently suggested they were blindsided, though evidence emerged that some executive were quite involved. For Bank of America CEO Ken Lewis, it was always a lose-lose situation, either he was out of touch or simply not smart. If the SEC decides that Bank of America erred in not disclosing such important information, it would be yet another body blow against Lewis. You have to wonder if he'll be able to withstand it.

For more:
- here's the Financial Times article