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The financial services behemoth Wells Fargo, which in 2020 was the fourth-largest U.S. bank in terms of total assets, has had its share of scandal, probably the best-known of which was in 2016, when it came to light that the bank’s employees had created up to 1.5 million bogus bank accounts.
The firm currently holds some $1.9 trillion in assets, just below the $1.95 trillion asset limit that was placed on Wells Fargo by the Federal Reserve in 2018.
Now, as reported by The New York Times article on 29 September, Wells Fargo has had federal penalties levied against it to the tune of $72.6 million for its latest scandal. This time, the irregularities centered around foreign currency transactions.
Federal prosecutors said that, over seven years, 771 clients (many of which were small to medium-sized businesses) had been defrauded by Wells Fargo; the bank’s sales staff, working on a system that paid bonuses in the millions on foreign exchange revenue, gave false information, added markups and charged higher prices to less-experienced customers.
As part of its settlement, Wells Fargo paid back $35.3 million to the clients the bank had overcharged and otherwise victimized.
Wells Fargo issued a statement which said that the events in question had occurred before 2017, and that since then the bank’s foreign exchange procedures and oversight had been “significantly improved.”
TRENDPOST: Did any of those who perpetrated this fraud go to jail? Of course not! See “DON’T CALL THEM ‘CRIMINALS’ – THEY’RE ‘WHITE SHOE BOYS’!” (29 Sep 2020); unlike most “common” criminals, corrupt banksters (just as greedy, just as criminal) can rob people with relative impunity; if caught, they face fines, penalties and forced restitution (which doesn’t necessarily undo the damage), but seem to never risk incarceration.
For more of Wells Fargo criminal violations for which they get a slap on the wrist, while we the little people of Slavelandia are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law for minor crimes, also see “EX-WELLS FARGO CEO SETTLES CASE FOR $2.5 MILLION” (17 Nov 2020) and “WELLS FARGO: SLAP ON THE WRIST FOR COMING MORE CRIMES” (14 Sep 2021).