So who will Sallie Krawcheck choose as the next head of Merrill Lynch? Recall that Lyle LaMothe stepped down a month ago as head of the vaunted Thundering Herd, which is still adjusting to life as a unit of Bank of America. Since then, people have been speculating about his replacement, which Reuters calls one of the most important decisions that Krawcheck faces since joining the firm in 2009.

The new hire will be expected to bring peace to the empire, bringing the Merrill Lynch side together with the Bank of America side. Beyond mere détente, the new hire will be expected to find legitimate synergies, which have long been promised by Bank of America executives.

The rumor mill holds that "John Thiel, a 22-year Merrill veteran who runs its high-net-worth business, and Andrew Sieg, a Merrill veteran whom Krawcheck recruited from Citigroup, are the front runners," notes Reuters.

There is a also a chance that Krawcheck "will reach into Merrill's bench of regional managers, the traditional breeding ground for leaders of the Thundering Herd. The two names most often mentioned were William Lorenz, the Southeast division manager, and Donald Plaus, head of the Northeast region."

As for LaMothe, some people believe the 49-year-old executive did not really "retire" but tired of the job, specifically the imperative for Merrill Lynch to cross-sell Bank of America products.

For more:
- here's the Reuters article

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