SAN FRANCISCO–Wells Fargo said it is terminating approximately three-dozen district managers for what the bank said was a lack of oversight related to a sales scandal that took place two years ago.
As CUToday.info has documented extensively, Wells Fargo has been mired in numerous scandals over the last several years, including the opening of nearly three-million bogus customer accounts as employees attempted to meet aggressive sales goals. That scandal led to the firing of more than 5,300 employees.
Now the bank says it is firing the district managers, who typically oversee between 5- to 15 retail branches, as the result of the same 2016 scandal.
Senior executives, including consumer banking head Mary Mack, have briefed the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency on the firings, sources told the Wall Street Journal. The bank has sought to reassure regulators it is fixing problems that have emerged throughout the bank following the sales-practices scandal, the Journal added.
In recent weeks, the Journal reported, lawyers for Wells Fargo have questioned dozens of the district managers about activities or documents related to sales practices, in some cases going back more than 10 years, according to people familiar with the matter.
Wells Fargo continues to operate under a rare cap on asset growth imposed by the Fed as the result of its practices.