Jun. 27--A top Bank of America executive told Hub business leaders yesterday that the bank will expand in Boston and added that it will still be one of the world's largest asset managers following the sale of its Columbia Management unit.

"Columbia doesn't fit our model and we decided it would be better for Columbia's growth and prosperity to put it up for sale," said Brian T. Moynihan, president of global banking & wealth management for Bank of America in a speech to the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce. "But we will still manage more money than anyone else even after Columbia is sold."

Bank of America inherited Columbia -- which has $470 billion in assets under management -- when it acquired Fleet Boston about five years ago. The bank is also selling First Republic Bank, a San Francisco-based bank that caters to wealthy investors. First Republic was inherited by Charlotte, N.C.- based Bank of America through its takeover of Merrill Lynch & Co.

After his speech, Moynihan told reporters he wants to boost the size of the bank's wealth management business in Boston and nationally.

"It has to be bigger than it is now," Moynihan said. "We have now stabilized where we are and we are growing in Massachusetts and everywhere. There's not a market where our market share can't be bigger."

But he declined to say how many more employees would be added to the 16,000 plus who handle wealth management tasks nationwide.

"We wouldn't put a target on it because then you'd hold me to it if we missed it by a little," he said.

Moynihan declined to stray from Bank of America CEO Kenneth Lewis' testimony to Congress that the bank was not pressured by Federal Reserve Bank chairman Ben Bernanke to acquire Merrill Lynch. "I don't have anything to add, you have Ken's and Bernanke's testimony," he said.

On Lewis' future, Moynihan said, "He is the best person to run this company and drive us out of this problem."

When asked by the Herald if Lewis will be in the same job a year from now, Moynihan said, "You can ask Chad Gifford that question," referring to Charles Gifford, former Bank of America chairman who now sits on the board of directors.

tgrillo@bostonherald.com

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