Wells Fargo is the target of enforcement action by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) due to deficiencies in the company's financial crime risk management procedures and anti-money laundering (AML) policies. It was discovered that the San Francisco-based bank was deficient in areas including beneficial ownership processes, client due diligence, and reporting of questionable behavior. As per the agreement, Wells Fargo must submit a plan to resolve these deficiencies, enhance its AML and sanctions risk management procedures, and obtain OCC permission before extending certain services. This official move is a part of the ongoing regulatory issues that Wells Fargo is facing as a result of the 2016 phony account scandal.
Wells Fargo has been under regulatory scrutiny for a number of years; in 2018, the Federal Reserve imposed an asset ceiling of $1.95 trillion. Analysts do not anticipate that the OCC's decision will have an effect on the likelihood of raising the asset ceiling because the most recent accord focuses on AML concerns rather than difficulties with consumer banking. Since 2018, the bank has committed to solve its compliance difficulties by increasing expenditure by $2.5 billion yearly and hiring 10,000 people into risk and control jobs. Concerns about AML have also been raised by Citi and Bank of America in recent regulatory filings.
