Wells Fargo New Accounts Tumble 44% in Wake of Sales Scandal
- Credit-card applications plunge 50% to 200,000 in October
- ‘Takes time to rebuild trust,’ community bank head Mack says
Wells Fargo Account Scandal: Who Knew What, When?
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Wells Fargo & Co. said retail customers opened 44 percent fewer new accounts in October from a year earlier in the wake of the bank’s record-setting settlement with regulators over its cross-selling scandal.
The drop was 27 percent from September and is showing signs of stabilizing this month, Mary Mack, the lender’s head of community banking, said in a conference call Thursday. New credit-card applications dropped by half to 200,000 in October, the first full month since the settlement was disclosed on Sept. 8, the San Francisco-based company said in a statement.