Ex-Wells CEO Fined, Banned From Banking For Life

Former Wells Fargo CEO John Stumpf has been banned from ever working in the banking industry again by the U.S. government, according to a report by CNBC.

He will also have to pay $17.5 million for his role in a scandal at Wells Fargo involving millions of fake accounts created to meet the bank’s sales quotas.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) said that there will also be a number of other individuals selected for punishment involving the fake accounts scandal, including other executives at the bank.

“The actions announced by the OCC today reinforce the agency’s expectations that management and employees of national banks and federal savings associations provide fair access to financial services, treat customers fairly, and comply with applicable laws and regulations,” Comptroller of the Currency Joseph Otting said.

The stipulations of Stumpf’s settlement say that he can’t “in any manner” participate in any activity at an OCC regulated bank, or be a part of any bank’s corporate board votes.

Another Wells Fargo exec, Carrie Tolstedt, from the Community Bank unit, is still fighting her allegations, the OCC said. It wants to also ban her from working in the industry, as well as compel her to pay $35 million.

Wells Fargo has been struggling to recover from the scandal, and the past few years has been mired in reforms and restructuring, as well as stymied revenues and necessary cost cutting. The scandal happened in 2016.

Wells Fargo CEO Charlie Scharf told the bank’s employees that “the OCC’s actions are consistent with my belief that we should hold ourselves and individuals accountable.”

“They also are consistent with our belief that significant parts of the operating model of our Community Bank were flawed,” he added. “At the time of the sales practices issues, the Company did not have in place the appropriate people, structure, processes, controls, or culture to prevent the inappropriate conduct.”

He also said that the bank “will not make any remaining compensation payments that may be owed to these individuals while we review the filings.”