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Wells Fargo: The Financial Facade
School of Business, Liberty University
BUSI 201: Intermediate Business Comp Applications
Professor Angela Holt
July 9th, 2021
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Wells Fargo: The Financial Facade
Corporate America is a thriving industry that serves a great purpose to the economy.
Consumers rely on their products or services for many situations such as food, transportation,
and finances. A lot of trust goes into these companies with hopes that they do the right thing by
their customers, and by God. When companies make and act on decisions for the betterment of
themselves instead of the consumer, it tends to come back and bite hard and can fall into the
realm of unethical behavior. Unethical behavior can be summarized as an action that is viewed as
negative or unacceptable to society (Rasmussen, 2020), or consumers in this case. There are
many ways Corporate America can make unethical decisions, but it hits a personal nerve when it
involves the money and livelihood of those who keep them in business. One of the biggest
financial facades was performed by Wells Fargo back in 2016 and continues onto this very
moment.
Wells Fargo became the talk of the town in 2016 when news surfaced that employees had
been creating unauthorized accounts related to banking and credit cards since 2011(Egan, 2016).
The reason behind this act was to “meet and exceed sales quotas and earn the extra fees from the
unwitting customers’ (Cavico-Mujtaba, 2017). Due to these unauthorized accounts being opened
on behalf of current customers without their knowledge or consent, this resulted in the banking
company thriving off insufficient funds and overdraft fees. Accounts such as added insurance
policies to car loans, credit card applications, checking and savings accounts were forged and
opened. Wells Fargo committed a lot of crimes within this scandal, the biggest being fraud from
a financial and biblical perspective.
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In an article released by the Department of Justice, Deputy Assistant Attorney General
Michael D. Granston of the Department of Justice’s Civil Division stated, “When companies
cheat to compete, they harm customers and other competitors,” (DOJ, 2020). From a financial
standpoint, the falsified reports and numbers that were released to competitors and Wall Street
created a massive amount of distrust for Wells Fargo and its future endeavors. The acts of crime
were between 2011 to 2016; therefore, showing proof that it was intentional and a common
practice. This was led by CEO John Stumpf, who had been known for using the “cross-selling”
business tactic, where account holders (or in this case, employees) were pressured to open new
accounts (Cavico-Mujtaba, 2017). Wells Fargo not only robbed their peers and competitors of
honesty and fair play in Corporate America, they also robbed their customers of money, honesty,
and overall security over generational livelihood.
The behavior that Wells Fargo exuded in this scandal can be categorized as greed, lying
and sinful. All these characteristics do not go unnoticed and result in actions to balance out good
and evil because an inheritance gained hastily in the beginning will not be blessed in the end
(NIV; Proverbs 20:21). Although they do not have a personal relationship with their peers,
shareholders, and customers, they are still brothers and sisters in Christ. As children of God, we
are called to not steal and give false testimonies against one another (NIV; Exodus 20:23). At the
end of our life, we are all required to stand in front of God for judgment of our sins whether we
believe in Him and His word or not. While we are within our flesh, it is up to us to hold each
other accountable with the intention to learn and grow from mistakes with the help of God to
bring about justice for his chosen ones (NIV; Luke 18:7).
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As a result of the illegal and unethical actions of Wells Fargo, over 5,300 low-level
employees were fired, CEO John Stumpf stepped down, became barred from taking another
position within the banking industry with a $17.5M fine (Franck, 2020), and Wells Fargo
company agreed to pay a $3 billion settlement (DOJ, 2020). Exodus 20:15-16 states “do not
make any gods to be alongside me; do not make for yourselves gods of silver or gods of gold”
(NIV 2011). We cannot continue to live in the world of flesh and false idols to make living
better. We need to understand that our true living is within our soul with God and push to
maintain the life that gets one there. For those who are stuck in the wheel of finding temporary
happiness, children of God need to continue to pray and guide them to eternal happiness, love
and understanding.
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References
Cavico, F. J., & Mujtaba, B. G. (2017). Wells Fargo's Fake Accounts Scandal and its Legal and
Ethical Implications for Management: Quarterly Journal. S.A.M.Advanced Management
Journal, 82(2), 4-19.
http://ezproxy.liberty.edu/login?qurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.proquest.com%2Fscholarl
y-journals%2Fwells-fargos-fake-accounts-scandal-legal-
ethical%2Fdocview%2F1926580720%2Fse-2%3Faccountid%3D12085
Egan, M. (2016, September 8). 5,300 Wells Fargo employees fired over 2 million phony
accounts. CNNMoney. https://money.cnn.com/2016/09/08/investing/wells-fargo-created-
phony-accounts-bank-fees/
Examples of Unethical Behavior. (2020, December 10). Rasmussen University.
https://examples.yourdictionary.com/examples-of-unethical-behavior.html
Franck, T. (2020, January 24). Former Wells Fargo CEO John Stumpf barred from industry, to
pay $17.5 million for sales scandal. CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2020/01/23/former-
wells-fargo-ceo-stumpf-barred-from-industry-to-pay-17point5-million-over-sales-
scandal.html
New International Version. (2011). BibleGateway.com: A searchable online Bible in over 150
versions and 50 languages. Bible Gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/
Wells Fargo Agrees to Pay $3 Billion to Resolve Criminal and Civil. (2020, February 21). United
States Department of Justice. https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/wells-fargo-agrees-pay-3-
billion-resolve-criminal-and-civil-investigations-sales-practices
