BOFA looking not near, but far, for CFO

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Jan. 13 (UPI) -- Bank of America's new Chief Executive Officer Brian Moynihan said the U.S. financial giant's next chief financial officer would come from outside the bank.

Moynihan said this week that current CFO Joe Price would be moved over Feb. 1 to lead the bank's consumer banking division.

"I just gave him the job I had before this, so it's obvious I have great confidence in his ability," Moynihan said, The Charlotte Observer reported Wednesday.

Bank of America said executive Neil Cotty would serve as interim CFO, which stops the forward shuffle, that took place at General Motors Co. recently when junior executives moved up on a daisy-chain after CEO Fritz Henderson abruptly resigned.

NAB Research analyst Nancy Bush said Moynihan was aiming for "stability and continuity right now more than anything else."

Looking beyond Bank of America corridors to find a new CFO was a fair ploy, however, she said.

"You can get a management team that's too inbred, so I think it's a good idea that they have at least one major player from the outside," Bush told the Observer.