Wells Fargo CFPB Findings ‘Highly Disturbing,’ Moody’s Says
- Case involving fake accounts seen as a credit negative
- Senators, presidential candidate Clinton criticize lender
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Revelations that Wells Fargo & Co. employees opened more than 2 million unauthorized accounts are “highly disturbing” and could hurt holders of the bank’s debt, Moody’s Investors Service said.
The “deficiencies” uncovered by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and other government investigators show that the bank’s “vaunted cross-selling capabilities were inflated,” the credit grader said Monday in a report. The bank encouraged “pervasive inappropriate practices” and managers didn’t provide oversight of employees, Moody’s said. Results of examinations by CFPB and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency are credit negatives, according to the report.