Wells Fargo Shares Gain on Termination of 2015 OCC Agreements

Shares of Wells Fargo & Company WFC rose 1.1% following the company's announcement of termination of 2015 agreements by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) related to the previously held financial subsidiaries, leaving it with one more major hurdle to clear.

The termination of the 2015 agreement marks the 13th consent order resolved by Wells Fargo since 2019 and the seventh since the beginning of 2025. The termination of these agreements signifies a step forward in resolving regulatory issues.

WFC’s Progress to Fix Regulatory Hurdles

The bank has been under scrutiny from regulators following a series of scandals, including the creation of millions of unauthorized accounts. Since 2018, the bank has been slapped with a $1.95-trillion asset cap by the Federal Reserve. The resolution of consent orders are part of the bank’s broader strategy to overhaul its operations and ensure adherence to regulatory expectations.

On Wednesday, at the Bernstein Conference, Wells Fargo's CEO Charlie Scharf expressed confidence in the bank’s regulatory improvements, signaling that the bank is inching closer to the point of lifting the $1.95-trillion asset cap. During the Bernstein conference, Scharf highlighted Wells Fargo’s continued efforts to strengthen its compliance framework. It has also allocated $2 billion annually to enhance risk controls and operational processes.

With the termination of the OCC’s 2015 consent order, WFC moves a step closer to getting its asset cap lifted. With the focus now shifting to the remaining 2018 Federal Reserve board consent order, the company continues its commitment to compliance and regulatory improvement.

Due to the asset cap, the company is unable to grow to its potential. This is affecting its loan growth. Given that loans are among the largest assets a bank can hold, the lifting of the asset cap will mark a positive turning point for Wells Fargo. This move will allow the bank to offer loans without restrictions, supporting the top-line expansion and positioning the bank for long-term growth.

Wells Fargo’s Price Performance & Zacks Rank

WFC shares have gained 27.3% over the past year compared with the industry’s growth of 29.4%.

WFC carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks (Strong Buy) here.

Other Banks’ Progress to Fix Regulatory Issues

In December 2024, Bank of America BAC received a cease-and-desist order from the OCC, addressing the deficiencies under Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and sanction compliance programs.

The order against BAC was based on violations, and inappropriate and unsafe practices concerning these programs, alongside a failure to report suspicious activity in a timely manner and rectify shortcomings related to its Customer Due Diligence processes identified earlier. The order mandates the bank to apply thorough remedial measures to improve its the BSA and anti-money laundering (AML) and sanction compliance programs.

In October 2024, Citigroup’s C 2013 anti-money laundering enforcement action was terminated by the Federal Reserve. In March 2023, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency raised concerns over insufficient controls and risk management practices pertaining to the BSA and AML requirements.

The enforcement action did not include any fine and was filed against C and its subsidiaries, Banamex and Citibank N.A., in response to concerns about its compliance with AML regulations.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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