Wells Fargo Fires Four Executives Following Probe of Sales-Practices Scandal

By Emily Glazer 

Wells Fargo & Co. said Tuesday that four executives were fired for cause related to its sales-practices scandal based on its board's independent investigation.

The terminated executives are a few levels below the bank's top brass: former Wells Fargo Retail Banking Chief Risk Officer Claudia Russ Anderson; Arizona Retail Banking executive Pamela Conboy; Consumer Credit executive Shelley Freeman, who was also a former Los Angeles retail banking executive; and Retail Banking Strategy and Finance executive Matthew Raphaelson. The executives won't get a 2016 bonus and will forfeit unvested equity and vested outstanding options, according to a statement from the bank.

Wells Fargo's board is continuing its independent investigation of the scandal, which erupted last September when the bank entered into a $185 million settlement and enforcement action with regulators over sales practices that included staff opening accounts without customers' knowledge. This tarnished the bank's reputation and subjected it to a bevy of state and federal investigations, including by the Justice Department.

The board's investigation is expected to be completed before the bank's annual shareholder meeting in April, according to the bank's press release. "Any additional actions will be made public by that time," Wells Fargo said.

The Wall Street Journal earlier reported that the bank's board is also likely to eliminate 2016 bonuses for some top executives, such as Chief Executive Timothy Sloan and Chief Financial Officer John Shrewsberry.

The cut to compensation isn't meant to reflect culpability on the part of the executives in connection with the sales-practices scandal, the people said. Rather it is meant to show accountability for the bank's overall performance.

Write to Emily Glazer at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 21, 2017 14:32 ET (19:32 GMT)

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