SAN FRANCISCO–After years of scandals and a government-imposed cap on its growth, Wells Fargo has said it will eliminate as many as 26,500 jobs over the next three years.
The bank cited the increase in online banking usage as well as its own legal costs as reasons for announcing the cutbacks.
CEO Tim Sloan said Wells Fargo will cut 5% to 10% of its 265,000-person workforce.
"Wells Fargo takes very seriously any change that involves its team members, and as always, we will be thoughtful and transparent, and treat team members with respect," Sloan said in a statement.
As CUToday.info has reported, Wells Fargo has been involved in numerous scandals in recent years, the biggest of which was the creation of more than three-million bogus accounts as employees attempted to meet aggressive sales targets. The bank fired 5,000 employees in response to the fake accounts.
Wells Fargo said it will be closing as many as 800 branches in a number of markets by 2020, with plans to sell branches in Indiana, Michigan and Ohio.