Financial services major Bank of America (BofA) is likely to zero-in on an "emergency" chief executive officer this week, if its current CEO Kenneth D Lewis is forced to leave before 2009-end, says a media report.     

Attributing to a person familiar with the situation, The Wall Street Journal said that BofA's directors plan to settle on an emergency CEO pick this week, in case legal turmoil forces Lewis to step down before year-end.     

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The process is being led by a five-member board committee formed earlier this year to respond to concerns raised by US banking regulators, the report said citing a person familiar with the plan.

Led by BofA Chairman Walter Massey, the committee plans to submit its choice to the full board for approval. Regulators would be asked to sign off on the choice and then the plan would be shelved until needed, the report added.     

The discussions accelerated last month, after a federal judge rejected a proposed BofA settlement with the market regulator Securities and Exchange Commission and reports that New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo might file civil securities-fraud charges against Lewis.

On Friday, Bank of America had said that Lewis has informed the board of directors of his decision to retire with effect from December 31, 2009, and the board would ensure that a successor is selected by that date.     

A decision is expected by the end of October, and a narrowed list of candidates would be presented to the government for review, the report said attributing to a person familiar with the process.

Government officials are expected to tell the bank if they do not approve of specific names, essentially giving the US government informal veto power. Bank of America received $45 billion in taxpayer funded capital infusions last year.

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