B of A Braces for Hundreds of Protesters

A coalition of activist groups is planning a massive demonstration Wednesday at Bank of America's (BAC) annual meeting in Charlotte, N.C.

Shareholders will cast a say-on-pay vote on the compensation of senior executives and the bank's 12 directors, all of whom are up for reelection. The meeting is scheduled for 10 a.m.

99% Power, a coalition of union advocates, students and environmentalists, says it expects up to 1,000 protesters to demonstrate. It is unclear how many will be allowed into the meeting.

"Bank of America is under a legal obligation to ensure that all shareholders and their proxies have access to the meeting," says Amanda Starbuck, a program director of the Rainforest Action Network, a San Francisco nonprofit that wants B of A to end all lending to coal companies.

The protesters say they are demanding that B of A hold a moratorium on foreclosures, give principal reductions to all minority, low-income and underwater borrowers who owe more than their homes are worth and to pay what the coalition calls its "fair share" of taxes.

B of A's CEO Brian Moynihan has been adept in the past at handling protesters simply by waiting for security to usher demonstrators away and then continuing with meetings.

A B of A spokesman declined to comment.