Wells Fargo taps company veteran as interim head of wealth management

Wells Fargo has tapped an interim replacement for its head of wealth management. At the start of next month, Tim Traudt will become interim head of wealth management, according to an internal announcement on Monday. He replaces Jay Welker, who said last year that he was retiring. Mr. Traudt has been with Wells Fargo in a variety of roles since 1982, according to the memo. Last November, the Wall Street Journal reported that Wells Fargo had concluded an investigation into alleged gender bias in its wealth management group. Mr. Welker was reportedly a focus of some complaints, according to the Journal. Mr. Traudt is currently executive vice president, head of regional wealth management. Both he and David Kowach, president and head of Wells Fargo Advisors, will report directly to Jon Weiss, the head of wealth and investment management. The company has recently been reorganizing its wider wealth management franchise. Last summer, Wells Fargo & Co. unveiled the first phase of a $4 billion cost-cutting plan that will fold its bank brokerage channel into the larger wirehouse channel. The 3,500 bank-based advisers making up the Wealth Brokerage Services unit would become part of the Wells Fargo Advisors, which includes 9,500 wirehouse reps.