thain

The interior designer was not the only beneficiary of Mr Thain's largesse: his driver picked up $230, 000 for a year's work.

He said Mr Thain never broached the subject of his own future in the merger discussions.

That afternoon, Thain met Lewis ready to discuss the sale of a minority stake in Merrill Lynch.

One competitor, spotting Thain and Mack in conversation, said that such a union would be like two drunks trying to prop each other up.

What Thain did not receive upon being named chief executive was a crash course in the art of internal company politics.

"We have been consistently cleaning up the balance sheet, repairing the damage that was done over the last few years, " Mr. Thain said.

Consumers were just beginning to feel the impact of higher food and energy prices, Mr Thain said.

Mr Lewis heard of it from the bank's transition team, not Mr Thain himself.

Tutwiler's philosophy, according to those who dealt with her, was to promote Thain as "the public face of Merrill Lynch" .

Mr. Thain said the firm faced continuing losses, but they weren't unusual, given upheaval in the markets, directors recall.

Mr Thain, a former president of Goldman Sachs, is credited with transforming the NYSE since he took over in January 2004.

"Thain and Lewis are the best of their breeds in their respective industries, and Bank of America will need them, " Plath said.

Despite this, Thain didn't seem to grasp the gravity of some of his remarks.

But more than the money, the NYSE experience proved that Thain could run a company on his own.

Subsequently, the news that Thain was about to be fired sparked enthusiastic applause.

Mr Thain, seen as one of the favourites, has made it clear he wants all options on the table, according to people close to the process.

Thain agreed, reducing his bonus request over the course of the next two months.

Thain's generation of Wall Street leaders had never experienced anything akin to what lay before them in 2008.

This is quite a comedown for Mr Thain, who had been seen as a possible successor to Mr Lewis until relations soured.

Thain continued the company's expansion by acquiring Euronext, a pan-European exchange.

Yet Thain recalls that as he and Lewis talked, the strategic logic behind a full deal became apparent.

Thain said Jan. 26 that he'd kept the bank informed about the brokerage's finances and compensation.

John Thain of Merrill Lynch was originally going to be a big draw, but he has been thrown into the parchment waste-paper basket of history.

In less than nine months, Thain led three significant multi-billion dollar capital raising s.

The hype mattered: Thain's status helped him raise almost $20bn for a firm that had lost all credibility before his arrival.

The worst year on Wall Street in nearly a century was coming to an end, and Thain could rightfully claim to have saved his bank from ruin.

Still, Lewis told listeners in a conference call that he was happy that Thain had joined the BofA management team.

That afternoon, Thain recommended that neither he nor his top executives receive bonuses for the year.

A new CEO can only work with what he is given - and Thain was handed a mess.

The Merrill Lynch that Thain took over in December 2007 was a shadow of its former self.

If anyone has reason to feel embarrassed, however, it is not Mr Thain but his boss.

In our December interview, Thain admitted that he had underestimated the magnitude of the problems Merrill Lynch faced.

Though the resignation was "mutually agreed" , no one doubts that Mr Thain was given an angry boot.

Or Thain would turn down a request to hire a high-profile investment banker, but negotiations with the individual would still take place.

"The logic of it made a lot of sense to both of us, " Thain says.

Mr Thain also hopes international listing candidates will opt to list their shares in both New York and Paris.

If Lewis had had any illusions about how some of Thain's top deputies felt towards their boss, those illusions vanished.

His supporters lashed back, blaming a venomous culture at Merrill that never embraced Thain as its new leader.

This included angle, from port Alexander to Mr Thain of meridian arc length between two of the central angle.

But in early January, signs of dissatisfaction towards Thain erupted within Merrill.

Given Lehman's precarious situation, Fleming argued that Thain should start talking to BofA.

"The CDOs were the source of the vast majority of losses at Merrill, " Thain told us in December.

It was a speech more human than Thain has given.

The Fed and Treasury "were initially focused on Lehman but grew concerned about us" , Thain said.

Thain deserves a bonus, because he saved Merrill Lynch. He deserves a bonus, because he actually earned it.

At one meeting, Thain would insist that the trading desk "lighten up" the balance sheet.

Mr Thain subsequently named him chief financial officer of the NYSE.

Once you have invested in a trading platform, the cost of running extra transactions over it is minimal.

Mr Thain said recently that he hoped Asian exchanges would become more open to investment.

To more than one observer, Thain seemed shaken by the weekend's events.

Wall Street has been transfixed this week by the antics of former Merrill Lynch CEO John Thain.

Now many Merrill Lynch shareholders may scream that Thain earned nothing.

The BofA statement was a clear sign that the end was near for Thain.

In port Alexander just south of there is a place called Thain, i. e. today's Aswan, the two basically on the same meridian.

He takes on operational duties across Asia and will continue to report to John Thain.

Mr Thain's role is being looked into by New York's ever-vigilant attorney-general.

Thain had taken over as Merrill chief executive nine months before that weekend deal.

In recent months, Lehman CEO Dick Fuld and Merrill CEO John Thain had both said they could weather the storm.

But according to Merrill executives, by Sunday morning, Thain had dismissed the Morgan Stanley option.

'I can't help but compare Dick Fuld [the Lehman boss] and John Thain of Merrill Lynch.

I'm the supervisor in charge of the thain during this period.

Thain's work for the year was essentially done.

By 1990, Thain had risen to treasurer at Goldman and four years later, chief financial officer.

Prosecutor: Mr. Thain, you are only charged with abetting this crime, but that doesn't mean your charge isn't serious.

Moreover, Mr Thain secured a surprisingly good price: $29 per share, valuing his firm at $50 billion.

That canny piece of negotiating will ensure that Mr Thain remains a hero to some.

Making matters worse were Thain's own high-profile hires.

Thain arrived at the New York Fed soon after.

Mr Thain was not available for comment.

John Thain's world had changed, even if he hadn't.

By 2007, Thain was anxious for a new challenge.

A conference room was stocked with champagne , so that at around 9 pm, Thain and Lewis could toast the deal .

I wonder if O'Neal and Thain have ever given this any thought.

The board moved quickly, and in November 2007, Merrill announced that Thain would become its 12th chief executive.

"I didn't come here to sell the whole company, " Thain replied.

At first, Thain made the right moves, gathering allies quickly.

Thain forced the exchange to embrace electronic trading.

When Mr Thain took over at Merrill Lynch last year, Mr Chai soon followed, taking the reins as CFO.