John Thain, Merrill Lynch’s ex-CEO has held talks about becoming head of CIT Group, the commercial lender that emerged from bankruptcy last month, according to people familiar with the matter.

Thain is considering alternatives and hasn’t made a decision, according to one of the people, who declined to be identified because CIT’s search for a new CEO is private.

Jeffrey Peek, the former investment banker who has managed CIT since 2004, is scheduled to step down Jan. 15, CIT said yesterday.

Joining CIT would return Thain to the top of a public company a year after he was pushed out by Ken Lewis, then the CEO of Bank of America, which agreed to buy Merrill Lynch amid the 2008 financial crisis.