Wells Fargo Adds Three Board Members as Regulators Weigh Action

   By Cara Lombardo 
 

Wells Fargo & Co. will add three new independent directors to its board, the company said Wednesday, as federal regulators scrutinize its auto-insurance and mortgage operations and it manages fallout from a report it overcharged hundreds of foreign-exchange clients.

The new board members beginning Jan. 1 are Celeste Clark, Theodore Craver and Maria Morris.

Ms. Clark was previously chief sustainability officer and public policy and external relations officer at food-maker Kellogg Co. and is also principal of a health and regulatory policy consulting firm. Mr. Craver is the former chief executive of utility company Edison International and Ms. Morris is a former MetLife Inc. executive.

Wells Fargo has been reshaping its board as it responds to a string of high-profile scandals concerning its business practices. The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that federal regulators from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency have advised the board that they are weighing formal enforcement actions after improprieties that included forcing nearly 600,000 customers who financed cars with Wells Fargo to buy unneeded collision coverage.

Earlier this week, the Journal reported that an internal Wells Fargo review found the company overcharged hundreds of clients in its foreign-exchange business.

Ms. Clark's public policy experience "will bring expertise and perspective to the board at a time when environmental, social and governance matters have become increasingly important for the company's operations and key areas of interest for our many stakeholders," said Donald James, who chairs the board's nominating committee.

With the latest additions, Well Fargo's board has named six new directors this year and will have a 16-member board beginning next year.

Write to Cara Lombardo at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 29, 2017 10:27 ET (15:27 GMT)

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