Skip navigation


Current DateTime: 02:41:30 25 Nov 2009
LinksList Documentid: 24355697
  • Runway Angels

      The superbowl of fashion shows, models walk down the runway at the 2009 Victoria's Secret Show.

  • Smartphone Guide

      Here's a need-to-know guide to nine devices, based on features, price, network and platform.

  • Wines for the Holidays

      Not quite sure what wine to pair with Turkey or Creme Brulee? Our experts do.

FEATURED QUIZZES


Current DateTime: 02:41:30 25 Nov 2009
LinksList Documentid: 33793611
  • A Healthier & Wealthier You

      Take the following quiz and find out how much you know about the impact of obesity on the health of the U.S. economy.

  • The Billionaire BFF's

      Philanthropists. Bridge partners. Hockey players. Which responses are based on facts from Buffett's and Gates' real lives?

  • The Many Myths of Coca-Cola

      Can you tell which statements are true, and which ones are just rumors?


Current DateTime: 02:41:30 25 Nov 2009
LinksList Documentid: 24890560
  • Winterizing Your Portfolio

      If 2009 was the winter of our discontent, will 2010 be a winter wonderland for investors? A lot depends on the recovery—or lack thereof.

  • Investor's Guide to Real Estate

      Some even say the long-awaited recovery is here. Regardless, buyers and sellers alike can profit from our guide.

  • Alternative Investing

      Stocks and bonds? Sure. But it's a big world out there for investors.

powered by digg
Lehman CEO Is Listening To Possible Bids for Bank
By: Charlie Gasparino | 12 Jun 2008 | 04:49 PM ET
Text Size

Lehman Brothers Holdings CEO Richard Fuld is actively listening to offers for the beleaguered investment bank, including a possible bid by private-equity firm Blackstone for a 20% to 30% stake, CNBC has learned.
CNBC.com

Meanwhile, BlackRock [BLK  Loading...      ()   ], the publicly traded investment management firm, is not interested in buying Lehman, a source said.

Word of a possible acquisition or major investment in Lehman [LEH  Loading...      ()   ] comes as the fourth largest US investment bank struggles to combat rampant speculation about the company's future.

Earlier on Thursday, Lehman pushed out its chief financial officer, Erin Callan, and chief operating officer, Joseph Gregory, amid a persistent clamor over the company's weak performance.

The company said Herbert "Bart" McDade will take over as president and COO and Ian Lowitt will succeed Callan in the CFO position. Callan and Gregory are expected to stay with the company in different capacities.

The news comes days after Lehman announced a nearly $3 billion quarterly loss.

Callan in particular has been criticized lately for the company's performance and for not grasping the depth of Lehman's problems.

In a conference call Monday, she rebutted rumors of deeper troubles at the firm and said ithe results of its efforts to raise capital would be a stronger bank going forward.

Callan, 42, has been CFO since September and will stay at the firm "in a senior capacity," the company said.

Gregory, 56, who has been at Lehman for more than 30 years, also will remain with the company in an unspecified role, a Lehman spokesperson said.

Lehman CEO Richard Fuld said in a statement that replacing Gregory "has been one of the most difficult decisions either of us has ever had to make."

Despite the firm's troubles, there was general sentiment Lehman will survive if it can restore the credibility problems it is having on Wall Street. The company said it would not revise its prior forecast.

"It will not make very much money for anybody for a while," Richard Bove, an analyst with Ladenburg Thalman, said on CNBC. "The company's got to rebuild its business model in certain aspects, but I see no reason why it can't survive independent."

Lehman Brothers shares tumbled off the opening bell, but some analysts saw the management changes as a positive development and the stock was well off its lows as morning trade progressed.

"The initial reaction on Wall Street has been negative but I can't help but view it as a positive, assuming that the replacements have greater credibility than their predecessors," said Michael Wallace, global market strategist at Action Economics in San Francisco.

Billionaire investor Maurice "Hank" Greenberg, through a spokeswoman, said he is buying shares in Lehman Brothers Holdings as planned.

Greenberg, who is making the investment through a firm he controls, has not specified exactly how many shares he is buying in Lehman, having characterized it as a "pretty good size stake." He decided to take the stake earlier this week, after Lehman announced plans to boost capital.

Callan, who in recent months has been the public face of Lehman, is the latest in a stream of high-profile Wall Street executives who have been fired or demoted, amid the widening credit crisis. Her demotion left Wall Street with virtually no women in senior management roles.

Some investors wondered why Fuld wasn't taking more of the blame for Lehman's stumbles, which for some investors have recalled Bear Stearns Cos' woes before it ultimately collapsed.

"I think there's just a fear that the problems at Lehman are deeper than what Fuld thought," said Matt Kaufler, portfolio manager and equity analyst at Clover Capital Management, Rochester, N.Y. "What does this say about his oversight? He's taking a hit to his credibility, and it all rolls up to him."

--Reuters contributed to this report.

© 2009 CNBC.com
Tools:
Print EmailAdd This share icon
  • digg share

CNBC HIGHLIGHTS

  • Remember when auto shows were major events where new models could generate buzz?
  • Swine Flu Needle
  • CNBC’s Mike Huckman visits a cutting-edge plant to see how the flu vaccine of the future is being made.
  • People who bottle up their anger at work are up to five times more likely to suffer a heart attack, a study found.
  • Playboy Logo
  • Playboy will outsource its publishing operations in a bid to become profitable again.
  • A new McDonald's in Manhattan is the nation's first to sport a sleek, chic interior imported from stores in London and Paris.
  • For nearly three decades, these on-call experts have been dishing advice on how to – and not to – cook turkey.
ADD COMMENTS
Remaining characters


Current DateTime: 01:26:08 25 Nov 2009
LinksList Documentid: 29778428

Current DateTime: 01:02:04 25 Nov 2009
LinksList Documentid: 29779196

Current DateTime: 02:05:46 25 Nov 2009
LinksList Documentid: 29779199

Current DateTime: 01:02:04 25 Nov 2009
LinksList Documentid: 29779198
  Data is a real-time snapshot  *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes
Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis

© 2009 CNBC, Inc.  All Rights Reserved.
A Division of NBC Universal
Thomson ReutersThomson Reuters