Early years as CEO and turning the bank around

Brian Moynihan, long‑serving Chairman and CEO of Bank of America and host Wilfred Frost sit down for a wide‑ranging conversation exploring what it takes to run one of the world’s most important financial institutions, the state of the US economy, and how is leadership lessons for finance and beyond.

Moynihan explains how the “Bank of America” brand helps attract customers but also carries a deep responsibility and how his ‘customer in’ rather than ‘leadership out’ approach shapes their offering where they seek to empower clients to achieve their goals.

He reflects on taking over as CEO in 2010 amid post‑crisis turmoil, why he never doubted the franchise would endure despite enormous challenges in his early years, and how a long runway allowed him to clean up legacy mortgage issues and embed his “responsible growth” framework before accelerating earnings in recent years. Drawing on his background as a lawyer, he describes how critical thinking, precision and an understanding of regulation have shaped his decisions on risk, litigation and strategy in a heavily regulated industry.

Leveraging Bank of America’s data on 70 million US consumers, Moynihan outlines a base case of around 2.4% US growth in 2026, his positive outlook for capital markets, and relaxed perspective on asset quality, constructive outlook on AI, all while warning that US fiscal deficits are an “accreting risk” that must be managed before the “pipes get clogged.”

He discusses the difficulty of managing operating in different political environments and ultimately welcomes the engagement that the Trump administration has with business – “if America is strong then The Bank of America is going to be strong.

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