Cayne to Step Down As Bear Stearns CEO

James Cayne, Bear Stearns’ chairman and chief executive under fire after the firm was scorched by the sour mortgage market, reportedly will step down as CEO.

Cayne, named Bear Stearns CEO in 1993, began notifying company directors he plans to relinquish his CEO position but remain as chairman, sources familiar with the situation told The Wall Street Journal.

Expected to succeed Cayne as CEO is Alan Schwartz, Bear Stearns president.

Bear Stearns’ stock lost more than half its value in 2007, prompting off-line discussions about Cayne’s departure.

(Cayne) thought about it, and the board thought about it, and they agreed it was time to pass the baton, a source told the Journal.

His anticipated departure as CEO comes as Bear Stearns shares fell near a four-year low, reflecting investor concerns that the firm hasn’t seen the worst of the fallout from the credit crisis, the Journal reported Tuesday. As the U.S. mortgage market flounders, observers say it isn’t clear how Bear Stearns — a big player in mortgages and mortgage-related investments — will make up its huge revenue losses.