CEO Scharf sees 'several years' of regulatory work ahead for Wells Fargo

CEO Scharf sees 'several years' of regulatory work ahead for Wells Fargo
The bank remains committed to turning itself around after a series of scandals, but implementing all its plans will take time, Scharf said in prepared testimony for a congressional committee hearing.
SEP 20, 2022
By  Bloomberg

Wells Fargo & Co. remains committed to turning itself around following a series of scandals that have plagued the bank since the middle of the last decade, but it will take “several years of work” to satisfy U.S. regulators, Chief Executive Charlie Scharf said.

The San Francisco-based bank is “laser-focused on meeting our own expectations and those of our regulators,” Scharf said in prepared remarks for a hearing Wednesday before the House Committee on Financial Services. The CEO is set to testify during two days of congressional hearings alongside his counterparts from major lenders including JPMorgan Chase & Co., Bank of America Corp. and Citigroup Inc.

Wells Fargo has been dealing with a series of scandals and regulatory issues for years, and is operating under a growth cap imposed by the Federal Reserve. A year ago marked the expiration of a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau consent order issued in 2016 regarding the bank’s retail sales practices, and in December the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency terminated a 2015 consent order over add-on products Wells Fargo improperly sold to customers.  

“Despite achieving these and other milestones, we know we still have much more work to do,” Scharf said. “We need to fully implement the many plans we have developed, many of which require several years of work, and also demonstrate their sustainability. We have multiple checkpoints along the way before we turn the completed work over to our regulators for their review. All of this takes time.”

Latest News

SEC accuses RIA firm, owner of violating settlement in multi-year fraud
SEC accuses RIA firm, owner of violating settlement in multi-year fraud

Commission says that fund and its investors lost $1.6M as a result.

Anderson, Baltch step up as co-heads of Dynasty's investment banking business
Anderson, Baltch step up as co-heads of Dynasty's investment banking business

Experience at Goldman Sachs, UBS will serve new leaders well in their new roles.

US equities have never been this out of favor with fund managers
US equities have never been this out of favor with fund managers

BofA survey finds record low exposure to US stocks.

Who has Trump picked as his top Fed enforcer?
Who has Trump picked as his top Fed enforcer?

Appointment cheered by Wall Street amid expectation of supportive tone.

S&P bulls focus on corporate execs for positive signals on stock rout
S&P bulls focus on corporate execs for positive signals on stock rout

Stock pickers are keenly observing leaders buying their own firm's shares.

SPONSORED Beyond the all-in-one: Why specialization is key in wealth tech

In an industry of broad solutions, firms like intelliflo prove 'you just need tools that play well together'

SPONSORED Record growth: Interval funds emerge as key players in alternative investments

Blue Vault Alts Summit highlights the role of liquidity-focused funds in reshaping advisor strategies