Bank of America’s biggest advocate for brand safety in media has left the banking giant. Lou Paskalis, who had been senior VP, of customer engagement and media planning, exited his role earlier this spring, a Bank of America spokeswoman confirmed today. He had been with the Charlotte, N.C.-based bank since 2013; before that, Paskalis spent time at American Express.

One of media’s most outspoken executives, Paskalis often publicly argued for the need to align a brand’s digital advertising with appropriate media. He began building Bank of America’s brand safety team two years ago with the hire of the bank’s first chief brand safety officer, a role that expanded into a full division.
 

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Bank of America’s spokeswoman did not say if the brand is replacing Paskalis. He did not immediately return a call requesting comment. Paskalis’ LinkedIn page lists his current position as chairman of the media and data board for MMA, a marketing trade organization. According his LinkedIn, he left Bank of America in May.

Under Paskalis, Bank of America has not advertised on Facebook, a rarity most modern brands that are increasingly reliant on social media. In contrast, banking rivals such as Chase, Wells Fargo and Ally are often investing a portion of media dollars with Facebook. The executive has been critical of social media platforms for years. Last year, he retweeted a tweet from Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi asking for advertisers to hold social media players accountable. Five years ago, Paskalis suggested creating an alternative to the Facebook-Google duopoly.

In 2019, Bank of America spent $294.9 million on measured media in the U.S., a 57% increase over 2018, according to Ad Age’s Datacenter. Total worldwide advertising for the year was $1.9 billion, 2.1% of sales.