BofA to make management shifts

• Tweet

CHARLOTTE, N.C., April 16 (UPI) -- Bank of America, the largest U.S. bank by assets, is making management changes in reaction to a decline in profits, sources told The Wall Street Journal.

BofA Chief Executive Officer Brian Moynihan has decided to transition Chief Financial Officer Chuck Noski to a vice chairman job sooner than expected, a source said.

The bank is also hiring Gary Lynch, a former Securities and Exchange Commission attorney, who will oversee the bank's compliance with regulations, the Journal said.

BofA is still struggling to regain its footing after the financial crisis, in part because of its 2008 purchase of mortgage business Countrywide Financial Corp.

BofA paid $4 billion for Countrywide, a business with 1.3 million mortgages on its books, more than 85 percent of which include borrowers at least 60 days late on their payments.

BofA's profits dropped 36 percent in the first quarter of 2011 compared with the same period a year earlier. By contrast, JPMorgan Chase reported profits rose 67 percent in the first quarter compared with January through March 2010.