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Bank of America Corporation

Banking and financial servicesFounded 1904
Reviewed by Swet Parvadiya
Company data updated: October 2026

Leadership History

Bank of America: CEO History

4 leaders · 1904 to present

Who is the CEO of Bank of America?

Brian Moynihan is the CEO of Bank of America, in the role since 2010. The first chief executive was Hugh L. McColl Jr., from 1998.

Current CEO
Brian Moynihan (since 2010)
First CEO
Hugh L. McColl Jr. (1998)
Leaders documented
4
Founded
1904
NameRoleFromToYears in role
Brian MoynihanChair of the Board and Chief Executive Officer2010Present16
Ken LewisChairman and Chief Executive Officer200120098
Hugh L. McColl Jr.Chairman and Chief Executive Officer199820013
Amadeo Peter GianniniFounder and Chairman1904194541
Who was CEO of Bank of America before Brian Moynihan?
Ken Lewis was CEO of Bank of America from 2001 to 2009, before Brian Moynihan took over in 2010.

Company Overview

Bank of America is a universal bank with $3.41T of assets at December 31, 2025, the second largest in the United States by that measure. It runs two businesses that look nothing alike. For roughly 69 million consumer and small business clients it is a retail bank: the branch on the corner, the checking account, the card and the mortgage. For companies, governments and institutional investors it is an investment bank and trading house operating as BofA Securities, with Merrill and the Private Bank managing $4.75T of client balances. Consumer Banking produced $43.7B of revenue in 2025, Global Wealth and Investment Management $24.9B, Global Banking $24.1B and Global Markets $24.1B. The company is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The massive banking conglomerate uniquely traces its original roots to San Francisco, California, where it was founded to serve working-class immigrants before growing through massive mergers into a Wall Street titan.

Brian Moynihan

Chair of the Board and Chief Executive Officer

2010 – Present

16 years (current)

Key Decisions & Impact

Moynihan took over in 2010 with Countrywide liabilities, an unfinished Merrill integration, heavy legal exposure and damaged public trust. His operating doctrine, responsible growth, ties client growth to risk, capital, expense and compliance limits, and it pushed expense discipline, digital banking, capital rebuilding and deeper Merrill integration instead of further acquisitions. FY2025 results were $113.1B of revenue, $30.5B of net income, $3.41T of total assets, a 61.65 percent efficiency ratio and a 14.22 percent return on average tangible common shareholders' equity. The unfinished business is the $80.3B of unrealized losses in the held-to-maturity securities book and consumer-fee compliance after the 2023 CFPB and OCC orders.

Legacy

Moynihan became chief executive officer on January 1, 2010, after running the general counsel, consumer banking and wealth management units, and he also chairs the board. He led the legal cleanup of the Countrywide and Merrill Lynch mortgage claims, including the $16.65B Justice Department settlement and the roughly $9.33B FHFA agreement in 2014, rebuilt capital to $201.4B of common equity tier 1, and replaced acquisition-led expansion with organic growth and digital investment. In September 2025 he named Dean Athanasia and Jim DeMare Co-Presidents and added the executive vice president title for Chief Financial Officer Alastair Borthwick, building a succession bench while staying on as chair and chief executive officer.

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Ken Lewis

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

2001 – 2009

8 years

Key Decisions & Impact

The two 2008 acquisitions defined his tenure. Countrywide cost about $4B and later produced the $16.65B Justice Department settlement and the roughly $9.33B FHFA agreement. Merrill Lynch cost about $50B in stock, was approved by the Federal Reserve in November 2008 and closed on January 1, 2009, and became the company's wealth and investment banking engine, but the losses and bonuses disclosed around the closing drew congressional and regulatory scrutiny and preceded his departure.

Legacy

Lewis joined the company in 1969 as a credit analyst, ran corporate strategy from 1999, and became chairman and chief executive officer on April 25, 2001 when Hugh McColl retired. He bought FleetBoston Financial in 2004, MBNA in 2006, LaSalle Bank in 2007, then Countrywide Financial and Merrill Lynch in 2008. He announced on September 30, 2009 that he would retire effective December 31, 2009, after forty years at the company, with the Merrill and Countrywide integrations under way and the $45B of Treasury TARP investments about to be repaid.

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Hugh L. McColl Jr.

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

1998 – 2001

3 years

Key Decisions & Impact

The 1998 merger was his defining decision: it moved the company's center of gravity to Charlotte, gave it a national branch network and set up the next decade of consolidation. He then handed the company to Kenneth D. Lewis, who had held primary responsibility for corporate strategy since 1999.

Legacy

McColl joined the company in 1959 as a management trainee and built NationsBank through interstate acquisitions before its 1998 combination with San Francisco based BankAmerica, which took the Bank of America name and created the first coast-to-coast U.S. bank. He stayed chairman and chief executive officer of the merged company until his retirement, announced on January 24, 2001 and effective April 25, 2001.

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Amadeo Peter Giannini

Founder and Chairman

1904 – 1945

41 years

Key Decisions & Impact

Branch banking was his central bet: many small accounts in many towns rather than one office serving the wealthy. He retired in 1930, returned after disagreeing with the new management and ran the company until 1945. By his death in 1949 the former single-teller office claimed more than 500 branches and $6 billion of assets and was then the largest bank in the world.

Legacy

Giannini was born in San Jose, California, in 1870 to Italian immigrant parents and sold fruit and vegetables from a horse-drawn wagon before opening the Bank of Italy in San Francisco at the age of 34. He solicited deposits from working-class immigrants, lent on character, and after the April 1906 earthquake rescued the bank's gold and silver and lent from a makeshift bank on a North Beach wharf on a handshake. He then built the first statewide branching system in the country, and the Bank of Italy changed its name to Bank of America on November 1, 1930.

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Challenges & Strategic Context

Bank of America's central challenge is earning more from a very large balance sheet. Its held-to-maturity securities book carried an amortized cost of $522.7B against a fair value of $442.4B at December 31, 2025, so about $80.3B of unrealized losses has to run off before that money can be reinvested at current yields. Return on average common shareholders' equity was 10.59 percent in 2025 and return on average tangible common shareholders' equity was 14.22 percent, both better than 2024 but still modest for the size of the franchise. Consumer fee practices are the other pressure point after the 2023 CFPB and OCC orders, and deposit costs have to stay low while clients can move cash into higher-yielding alternatives.

Bank of America CEO and Leadership FAQ

Who is Brian T. Moynihan and what has defined his leadership as CEO of Bank of America?

Brian Moynihan, a lawyer who had run the general counsel, consumer banking and wealth management units, became chief executive officer on January 1, 2010. He settled the crisis-era mortgage claims, including $16.65B with the Justice Department and about $9.33B with the FHFA in 2014, cut costs, shrank the branch network, and lifted net income to $30.5B in 2025.

Who was Kenneth D. Lewis and what major crisis acquisitions did he execute?

Ken Lewis was chairman and chief executive officer from April 25, 2001 until December 31, 2009. He acquired FleetBoston Financial ($47B, 2004), MBNA ($35B, 2006), LaSalle Bank ($21B, 2007), Countrywide Financial (about $4B, 2008) and Merrill Lynch (about $50B in stock, agreed in September 2008 and closed on January 1, 2009).

Who was Hugh L. McColl Jr. and how did he build the modern Bank of America?

Hugh McColl Jr. joined the company in 1959 as a management trainee and built NationsBank through interstate mergers. In 1998 NationsBank combined with San Francisco based BankAmerica, took the Bank of America name and created the first coast-to-coast U.S. bank. He retired as chairman and chief executive officer on April 25, 2001.

Who was A.P. Giannini and what was his founding philosophy at Bank of America?

Amadeo Peter Giannini, the son of Italian immigrants, founded the Bank of Italy in San Francisco in 1904, lent to working-class customers on character, funded rebuilding after the 1906 earthquake from a makeshift bank on a wharf, and built the first statewide branching system in the country.

Who is Alastair Borthwick and what is his role as Chief Financial Officer of Bank of America?

Alastair Borthwick has been Chief Financial Officer of Bank of America since 2021, after running Global Commercial Banking, and was given the added title of executive vice president in September 2025. He oversees the balance sheet, liquidity and capital allocation.

What role does Dean Athanasia hold at Bank of America?

Dean Athanasia became a Co-President of Bank of America on September 12, 2025, alongside Jim DeMare. He previously served as president of regional banking, covering consumer, small business and commercial banking.

What corporate governance structure guides the Bank of America Board of Directors?

The Board of Directors comprises independent global business, regulatory, and financial leaders led by Lead Independent Director Lionel L. Nowell III, governing executive compensation, enterprise risk, and capital planning.

What public policy advocacy does Brian Moynihan lead in global business forums?

Brian Moynihan chairs The Clearing House Association and the Sustainable Markets Initiative, and takes part in the World Economic Forum International Business Council, the Financial Services Forum, the Bank Policy Institute, the Business Roundtable and the American Heart Association CEO Roundtable.

Who is the CEO of Bank of America?

Brian Moynihan has served as CEO since 2010, famously credited with executing a massive, grueling turnaround to save the bank from the toxic mortgage assets it acquired during the 2008 financial crisis.

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Content is for informational purposes only. Not financial advice. Data sourced from SEC filings, annual reports, and public records. See our full disclaimer and methodology.