By Christina Rexrode
Brian Moynihan got a promotion last year, but he is also taking
a pay cut.
Mr. Moynihan, chairman and CEO of Bank of America Corp., is
expected to be paid $13 million for 2014, most of it in the form of
restricted stock. That is down $1 million, or 7%, from 2013, when
he was paid $14 million, a personal record.
The new pay follows a mixed year for the Charlotte, N.C.,
lender. Mr. Moynihan added the chairman's title to the CEO role he
has held since 2010, as the bank was able to raise its dividend for
the first time since the financial crisis. But that happened only
after the bank acknowledged an error that caused it to miscalculate
its capital levels for years.
The bank in 2014 also settled with the Justice Department to
wrap up accusations that it and predecessor companies sold shoddy
mortgage investments in the run-up to the financial crisis. That
removed a cloud of uncertainty over the bank, but it cost $16.65
billion, sticking Bank of America with the ignominy of paying the
biggest settlement ever brokered between the U.S. government and a
single company.
The payout for the 55-year-old Mr. Moynihan shows the bank's
board kept the executive's paycheck moving in the same direction as
the company's bottom line. For 2014, the bank's profit plunged 58%,
weighed down by the costs of the Justice Department settlement and
other litigation. Bank of America's profit did increase across most
major units, including consumer and business banking and global
markets.
The executive's pay was disclosed Tuesday in a regulatory
filing. The bank said it would pay Mr. Moynihan restricted stock
valued at $11.5 million, based on the stock's average closing price
for the previous 10 days, which was $16.20.
Mr. Moynihan is also expected to be paid $1.5 million in salary,
in line with last year, according to a person familiar with the
situation. He hasn't received a cash bonus in recent years and
isn't expected to get one for 2014, according to the person.
Unlike Bank of America, both J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. recently increased cash bonuses for their
CEOs, though both those banks reported higher profits for 2014.
Last fall, Bank of America's board named Mr. Moynihan its
chairman, with some stockholders criticizing the move because a
2009 shareholder vote had asked the bank to split the chairman and
CEO roles. The bank has said that the board's decision signaled
that the firm was no longer in crisis mode as it was in 2009.
Mr. Moynihan's $14 million payout for 2013 was his highest as
CEO, representing a 17% increase from the $12 million package he
received for 2012.
The restricted shares that make up the bulk of Mr. Moynihan's
compensation are payable over time and tied to company performance.
Bank of America's shares rose 16% in 2014 but are down 7% this
year.
Write to Christina Rexrode at christina.rexrode@wsj.com
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