FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, April 10, 2017
Contact: Nick Jacobs, 202-618-6430 or njacobs@bettermarkets.com
Washington, D.C. – Dennis Kelleher, President and CEO of Better Markets, issued the following statement following the release of a report from the Wells Fargo Board of Directors on its bogus account scandal:
“The self-investigation and actions reported today by the Board of Directors of Wells Fargo are grossly deficient. Consistent with their past too-little, too-late cosmetic actions, blaming and punishing two previously fired executives are little more than standard moves in a PR playbook designed more to conceal than to reveal what really happened here and who was involved.
“Thousands of Wells Fargo’s employees and officers engaged in serious criminal conduct ripping off millions of customers over many years. This was an historic years-long breakdown in Board and management oversight as well as all the risk, legal, compliance and audit controls at the bank.
“It is laughable to claim that only two senior executives should be terminated and meaningfully held accountable. It is clear that the Board was seriously and repeatedly misled by numerous officers, including a number who remain in senior positions at the bank. Moreover, it’s equally clear that the Board members themselves had a grossly deficient see-no-evil, hear-no-evil view of their role as fiduciaries at the third largest bank in the country.
“Shareholders at the April 26th annual meeting should reject these deficient actions and hold the Board accountable by voting against all Board members and for a truly independent outside investigation. It is also time for the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission to do what they have failed to do for years: thoroughly investigate, hold accountable and prosecute the senior executives and Board members at a too-big-to-fail bank for their misconduct and negligence.”
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Better Markets is a non-profit, non-partisan, and independent organization founded in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis to promote the public interest in the financial markets, support the financial reform of Wall Street and make our financial system work for all Americans again. Better Markets works with allies – including many in finance – to promote pro-market, pro-business and pro-growth policies that help build a stronger, safer financial system that protects and promotes Americans’ jobs, savings, retirements and more. To learn more, visit www.bettermarkets.com.
