Kenneth D. Lewis, Bank of America’s chief executive officer and president, has announced his retirement to take effect at the end of 2009, following a turbulent year in the wake of the Merrill Lynch takeover.

The company did not name an immediate successor but, according to a press statement hoped to have one in place by the end of the year.

In a press statement, Lewis, who has come under political fire for Bank of America’s controversial acquisition of Merrill Lynch, said, "Bank of America is well positioned to meet the continuing challenges of the economy and markets." He added in that statement: "I am particularly heartened by the results that are emerging from the decisions and initiatives of the difficult past year-and-a-half."

The 62-year-old Lewis notified BofA’s board of directors of his decision to retire from his positions as CEO and director, effective December 31, 2009, according to the release.

"The Merrill Lynch and Countrywide integrations are on track and returning value already," Lewis noted in the statement. "We are in position to begin to repay the federal government's TARP investments. For these reasons, I decided now is the time to begin to transition to the next generation of leadership at Bank of America."

Lewis has been CEO since 2001. But the last year of his tenure was marred by criticism surrounding the merger last September with Merrill Lynch and bonuses paid out to Merrill executives prior to the deal.

The New York Attorney-General’s office is probing whether bank executives failed to disclose widening losses at Merrill and approved $3.6 billion in bonuses to Merrill executives before the shareholder vote allowing BofA to acquire Merrill.

In addition, a federal judge in New York recently rejected a proposed $33 million settlement between Bank of America and the Securities and Exchange Commission over the Merrill bonuses.

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Life After Lewis: Next Steps at Bank of America:The Ken Lewis era at Bank of America Corp. is in its final stages, and in August, sources close to the company said that five executives were being considered to replace him as CEO.

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