BANK PICKS A SUCCESSOR TO LEWIS Finally, there is white smoke at Bank of America: Brian T. Moynihan was selected to become the next chief executive. After a two-and-a-half-month search, Bank of America late Wednesday named Moynihan, the head of its consumer banking business, to succeed Kenneth D. Lewis. The announcement ends one of the industry's most closely watched successions in recent memory. In recent weeks, Bank of America reached out to executives at other big banks, only to have them rebuff its advances. And the bank learned that another internal contender, Gregory L. Curl, had become a potential target in an investigation by the attorney general of New York. Two board members spoke with the attorney general's staff on Wednesday to discuss that investigation, which centers on the bank's acquisition of Merrill Lynch last year, and the broad outlines of a potential settlement. Shortly after that meeting, the directors decided on Moynihan. The bank issued a statement by its chairman, Walter E. Massey, saying, 'Brian's wide range of experience, his relationships inside and outside of the company, and his demonstrated ability to understand business dynamics and effect constructive change made him the best person for the position.' Moynihan joined Bank of America after it acquired FleetBoston in 2004, becoming president of global wealth and investment management. Before he was named head of consumer banking, Moynihan served as president of investment banking and as general counsel. For the board, the decision largely centered on who could help the bank make a new start. For weeks, the board tried to woo outsiders, like Robert P. Kelly, the chief executive of Bank of New York Mellon. In particular, the newer members of the board said it was important to select a chief who was removed from the questions associated with the Merrill Lynch acquisition, according to a person familiar with the board's thinking. When Kelly turned the job down on Monday, the decision came down to Moynihan or Curl. Moynihan now faces the daunting task of guiding Bank of America into its post-bailout future. The bank recently repaid the $45 billions of taxpayer dollars that propped it up during the worst of the crisis. While Lewis transformed Bank of America into a national behemoth, his successor must grapple with the problems stemming from this legacy. Moynihan must repair the bank's relationship with regulators and perhaps set it on a new course. Both Curl and Moynihan were involved in the Merrill acquisition. Curl negotiated the deal's terms, and Moynihan became general counsel just before the deal closed, when the bank was negotiating with the government for a second bailout, largely because of Merrill's surprise losses. The attorney general of New York, Andrew M. Cuomo, began raising questions about Curl in recent weeks. In particular, Curl testified in the spring that he had discussed with an outside lawyer whether to disclose Merrill's fourth-quarter losses. But in November, no log of that call could be found and Curl said he could not recall it. Curl also testified in the spring that he had not seen a crucial element of the merger -- the material adverse change clause -- until mid-December. But this fall, evidence emerged that he had seen it before the shareholder vote on Dec. 5. 'We are seriously concerned that Mr. Curl has provided testimony that was intentionally or recklessly false,' David Markowitz, a lawyer in Cuomo's office, wrote in a letter to the bank last week. Bank of America said it did not believe there was any reason for legal action against Curl, and the bank said it was continuing to cooperate with Cuomo's investigation. 