B of A Bringing Back Execs
Published: 2/22/2010 11:30:00 AM
Jerry Byrne

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NEW YORK, Feb. 22 /PRNewswire/ -- Bank of America Merrill Lynch Global Banking and Markets President Tom Montag today announced that Sam Chapin and Todd Kaplan have been appointed executive vice chairmen of Global Banking, effective immediately. In these roles, Chapin and Kaplan will report to Montag and focus on deepening strategic client relationships and delivering the company's vast global resources on their behalf. Chapin will be based in New York, and Kaplan will be based in Chicago.

"Sam and Todd are among the most widely respected investment bankers in the industry," said Montag. "Their decisions to rejoin Bank of America Merrill Lynch are a reflection of the tremendous momentum we have achieved as a combined company and global industry leader." Chapin, a 26-year Merrill Lynch veteran, served as a vice chairman and member of the executive client coverage group from 2003 to 2009, responsible for developing and coordinating senior corporate client relationships around the world. Prior to that, he was head of global investment banking from 2001 to 2003. He joined Merrill Lynch in 1984 as a member of the mergers and acquisitions group and was named a managing director in investment banking in 1993 and a senior vice president of the firm in 2001.

Ok, so is it just me? Is this a case of what’s wrong with this picture? Here you have Todd Kaplan & Sam Chapin, two veteran executives (Kaplan worked there 22 years) of Merrill Lynch, returning to the fold now that times are good (or at least a whole lot better) again. They both left when the bank was in turmoil shortly after the takeover by Bank of America. Kind of like jumping off a sinking ship wouldn’t you say? Now they want back on? Where is the loyalty? Where is that old saying, “When the going gets tough, the tough get going? Well in this case they got going all right…..right out the front door. How about the guys who stuck around these past 14 months or so, who weathered the bad times, hung in there and stayed loyal to ‘Mother Merrill” as the company was lovingly referred to as for many years. Do you think they are happy to see Kaplan & Chapin return now that Wall St. is back on it’s feet. Call me old school, but I just don’t think it was the right thing to do bringing them back.
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