Thanks Mulvaney! Wells Fargo to Pay-Out Investors, Make Defrauded Customers Wait Years
Mulvaney’s CFPB Let Bank Set The Terms For Repaying Customers It Stole From
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Scandal-ridden bank Wells Fargo has announced it will pay its shareholders an extra $2 billion in dividends by the end of the year just days after indicating it will not pay back the customers it defrauded until at least 2020.
Under the leadership of Mick Mulvaney, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) set the stage for Wells Fargo’s immoral decision by allowing the controversial bank to set the terms of its own repayment.
Mulvaney’s CFPB has consistently gone soft on companies like Wells Fargo, which also happens to be a campaign contributor. During his time in Congress, the Wells Fargo Company Employee PAC showered Mulvaney with $12,000 in campaign cash.
“Wells Fargo’s decision to hand $2 billion over to its investors rather than repaying the customers it stole from is not surprising given Mulvaney’s decision to let the scandal-ridden bank set the terms of its own repayment,” said Karl Frisch, executive director of Allied Progress.
He continued, “Wells Fargo showered Mulvaney with thousands of dollars in campaign cash. With each passing month that investment continues to pay off handsomely for the bank. They had Mulvaney’s back and now he has their back.”
What You Need To Know
Mick Mulvaney Took Thousands In Campaign Cash From Wells Fargo And Then Went Easy On Them At CFPB, Letting The Bank Set The Terms By Which It Made Defrauded-Customers Whole.
During His Time In Congress, The Wells Fargo Company Employee PAC (AKA Wells Fargo Employee PAC) Gave $12,000 To Mick Mulvaney’s Congressional Campaigns
On June 24, 2016 The Wells Fargo and Company Employee PAC gave $1,500 to Mulvaney for Congress. [Wells Fargo and Company Employee PAC Schedule B, Federal Elections Commission, 06/24/16]
On November 30, 2015 the Wells Fargo and Company Employee PAC gave $2,500 to Mulvaney for Congress. [Wells Fargo and Company Employee PAC Schedule B, Federal Elections Commission, 11/30/15]
On April 20, 2015 the Wells Fargo and Company Employee PAC gave $2,000 to Mulvaney for Congress. [Wells Fargo and Company Employee PAC Schedule B, Federal Elections Commission, 04/20/15]
On March 21, 2014 the Wells Fargo and Company Employee PAC gave $1,000 to Mulvaney for Congress. [Wells Fargo and Company Employee PAC Schedule B, Federal Elections Commission, 03/21/14]
On December 12, 2013 the Wells Fargo and Company Employee PAC gave $1,000 to Mulvaney for Congress. [Wells Fargo and Company Employee PAC Schedule B, Federal Elections Commission, 12/12/13]
On October 21, 2013 the Wells Fargo and Company Employee PAC gave $1,000 to Mulvaney for Congress. [Wells Fargo and Company Employee PAC Schedule B, Federal Elections Commission, 10/31/13]
On August 2, 2013 the Wells Fargo and Company Employee PAC gave $1,000 to Mulvaney for Congress. [Wells Fargo and Company Employee PAC Schedule B, Federal Elections Commission, 08/02/13]
On June 12, 2012 the Wells Fargo and Company Employee PAC gave $1,000 to Mulvaney for Congress. [Wells Fargo and Company Employee PAC Schedule B, Federal Elections Commission, 06/12/12]
On March 28, 2012 the Wells Fargo and Company Employee PAC gave $1,000 to Mulvaney for Congress. [Wells Fargo and Company Employee PAC Schedule B, Federal Elections Commission, 03/28/12]
Once He Took Over At The CFPB, Mick Mulvaney Let Wells Fargo Decide How To Compensate Customers The Bank Had Defrauded.
Mick Mulvaney’s CFPB Settled With Wells Fargo In A Manner “That Will Allow Wells Fargo To Set The Terms By Which Defrauded Customers Can Be Made Whole.” “The Billion-Dollar Wells Fargo settlement reached between the bank and the consumer agency now controlled by Trump adviser Mick Mulvaney has been heralded as evidence that the longtime critic of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau might not burn it to the ground after all. But a closer look at the details of that consent decree reveals that it is set up in such a way that will allow Wells Fargo to set the terms by which defrauded customers can be made whole.” [David Dayen, “Mick Mulvaney’s Wells Fargo Settlement Lets The Bank Decide How Consumers Are Paid Back,”The Intercept,04/26/18]
- Wells Fargo’s Victims Would Have To Prove “‘Economic Or Other Cognizable Harm'” To Receive Restitution. “[…] in order for homeowners and auto loan customers to receive restitution, they would have to identify an ‘economic or other cognizable harm’ based mainly on a specific violation of federal law, under a standard created and judged by Wells Fargo. CFPB does get to audit the remediation plans, but there’s no mechanism for forcing the bank to change those plans outside of going to a court and claiming noncompliance with the settlement.” [David Dayen, “Mick Mulvaney’s Wells Fargo Settlement Lets The Bank Decide How Consumers Are Paid Back,”The Intercept,04/26/18]
Now Wells Fargo Is Telling Customers Who Were Improperly Charged They May Not Get Paid Until 2020… While Giving Shareholders A Massive Windfall This Quarter.
Wells Fargo Recently Told Consumers Who Been Wrongly Charged For Auto Insurance They May Not Be Paid Back Until At Least 2020.
Wells Fargo Announced In October 2018, That It Would Not Finish Paying Back Customers Wrongly Charged For Auto Insurance Until At Least 2020. “Wells Fargo will not finish paying back the estimated 600,000 customers it wrongly charged for auto insurance until at least 2020, the bank said in a letter to U.S. lawmakers seen by Reuters. U.S. regulators slapped Wells Fargo with a $1 billion penalty in April when it admitted to wrongly forcing drivers into auto insurance policies. That agreement envisioned the customer payouts would finish within months.” [Patrick Rucker, “Wells Fargo says auto insurance remediation will not wrap up until 2020,” Reuters, 10/29/18]
- Wells Expects To Pay $212 Million To Drivers Who Were Wrongly Charged.“In August, Wells Fargo said that it expected to pay back drivers $212 million…. Wells Fargo plans to automatically refund insurance for drivers in five states but will require drivers in other states to prove that they are entitled to a rebate, according to the letter.” [Patrick Rucker, “Wells Fargo says auto insurance remediation will not wrap up until 2020,” Reuters, 10/29/18]
Just Days Earlier Though, Wells Fargo Announced It Would Pay Out Over $2 Billion To Shareholders By The End Of 2018.
In October 2018, Wells Fargo Announced That It Would Be Paying Its Shareholders “A Quarterly Common Stock Dividend Of $0.43 Per Share” on December 1, 2018. “Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) today announced a quarterly common stock dividend of $0.43 per share, payable Dec. 1, 2018 to stockholders of record on Nov. 9, 2018, as approved today by the Wells Fargo board of directors. Wells Fargo has approximately 4.7 billion shares outstanding.” [“Wells Fargo & Company Announces Common Stock Dividend and Increased Common Stock Repurchase Authority,” Business Wire, 10/23/18]
- With 4.7 billion shares outstanding, this payout will be over $2 billion.[“Wells Fargo & Company Announces Common Stock Dividend and Increased Common Stock Repurchase Authority,” Business Wire, 10/23/18]
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