Bank of America: Not Glamorous

Bank of America CEO Ken Lewis seems to have finally

woken up to the fact that he is not, and never will be, an investment banker:

Lewis said during a conference call that the company plans to scale back

its investment banking unit after trading mistakes led to $717 million of

losses.

If Lewis really wants to give

up on investment banking – and he should, given the tiny profits and

enormous headaches that it’s responsible for – he should also give up

on the equally-beleaguered

tower he’s building in midtown Manhattan. If he asked nicely, he might even

be able to sell it to Si Newhouse, who’s presently outgrowing

the building next door. Condé Nast is a New York company to its toenails;

Bank of America (the bank formerly known as Nationsbank) will always be considered

more than a little bit provincial here, no matter how many shiny skyscrapers

it builds.

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