In 2016, Wells Fargo faced a scandal when it was revealed that branch employees had opened millions of fake accounts under existing customers’ names to meet sales goals.
In April of 2018, Wells Fargo agreed to pay a $1 Billion fine over misconduct uncovered within its mortgage lending and auto departments.
Now, Wells Fargo is conducting an internal investigation into their individual retirement account practices.
The Unites States Labor Department is also opening an investigation into the bank’s retirement management business, specifically by looking into the retirement-plan services unit and whether they pressed customers to buy in-house funds, which generate more revenue.
Under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, Wells Fargo has a fiduciary responsibility to put its clients’ interests before those of the banks, especially services that keep more revenue in-house.
To their credit, Wells Fargo executives have vowed to evaluate how their clients’ retirement savings have been handled.
In a recent statement, executives said the company is “committed to thorough reviews of Wealth and Investment Management. We are making significant progress in our work to identify and fix any issues, make things right, and build a better, stronger company.”
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