Federal prosecutors launch criminal investigation into Wells Fargo over alleged discriminatory hiring practices: report
As the New York Times reports, New York prosecutors have launched a criminal investigation into banking giant Wells Fargo, investigating whether the company may have followed discriminatory hiring practices by conducting fake interviews with female and minority applicants. Is.
The Times reported Thursday, citing two sources familiar with the investigation, that federal investigators within a newly created civil rights office at the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s office are investigating whether Wells Fargo has been involved in a law prohibiting discrimination by conducting alleged fake interviews. had violated federal laws.
The news follows a report from The New York Times last month in which a whistleblower said Wells Fargo conducted fake interviews with applicants who were considered “diverse” for jobs that were already promised to other people. was. Following the article, the bank said that it is pausing its recruitment policy, which requires it to interview a diverse pool of candidates.
Wells Fargo has faced scrutiny from federal watchdogs several times in recent years.
In 2020, the international banking company agreed to pay $3 billion to settle allegations that it opened millions of accounts without customers’ consent to expand its services. Amid scrutiny, the Federal Reserve imposed an asset cap on Wells Fargo in 2018 to limit its growth.
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Wells Fargo has also been accused of racial discrimination in refinancing loans approved in 2020 and was recently fined $7 million by the Securities and Exchange Commission over alleged failure to report suspicious transactions in customer accounts.
Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, last month sent Wells Fargo CEO Charles Scharf a letter following reports of an alleged fake interview that criticized the company. There have been allegations of bad practices in recent years.
“The recent revelations of racial disparities in mortgage loans, fake job interviews for minority and female candidates, and disturbing anti-money laundering violations,” Brown wrote. “It is clear that Wells Fargo still has a long way to go before it grows in size to fine-tune its governance and risk management. It is unacceptable that nothing has improved after years of failed efforts. “
