Merrill CEO says he got it wrong on subprime

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Merrill Lynch & Co Inc (MER.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) Chairman and Chief Executive Stan O'Neal on Wednesday said he held himself accountable for moves that led to a $7.9 billion write-down in the third quarter, saying the company's bets on subprime mortgages were wrong.

"We got it wrong by being overexposed to subprime," O'Neal said on a conference call.

"I am accountable for the performance of the firm overall and my job, our job, the leadership team's job, is to address where we went wrong," O'Neal also said.

(Reporting by Tim McLaughlin)