Consumer bureau orders Wells Fargo to pay $3.7B to settle charges

Wells Fargo will pay $3.7 billion to settle allegations of mismanaging auto loans, mortgages and deposit accounts, according to the terms of a consent order with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced Tuesday.

The San Francisco-based bank allegedly illegally repossessed vehicles, charged surprise overdraft fees and froze consumer accounts, according to the order. The CFPB also accused the bank of improperly denying mortgage loan modifications.

Wells agreed to the order without admitting or denying its findings. The scandal-plagued bank will pay $2 billion in redress to consumers and a $1.7 billion civil penalty.

“Wells Fargo’s rinse-repeat cycle of violating the law has harmed millions of American families,” CFPB Director Rohit Chopra said in a statement. “The CFPB is ordering Wells Fargo to refund billions of dollars to consumers across the country. This is an important initial step for accountability and long-term reform of this repeat offender.”

Charlie Scharf, Wells Fargo’s chief executive officer, said in a statement that the "far-reaching agreement is an important milestone in our work to transform the operating practices at Wells Fargo and to put these issues behind us."

“We and our regulators have identified a series of unacceptable practices that we have been working systematically to change and provide customer remediation where warranted,” he said.