https://www.zerohedge.com/mark...onal-credit-business

Wells Fargo just announced that it's shutting down all of its existing personal lines of credit - a popular product offered by the retail-focused Wall Street giant - a move that will likely infuriate legions of customers.

The revolving credit lines, which will be shut down in the coming weeks, typically allow users borrow $3K to $100K, were pitched as a way to consolidate higher-interest credit-card debt, pay for home renovations or avoid overdraft fees on checking accounts attached to the loan.

Customers have been given a 60-day notice that their accounts will be shuttered, and remaining balances will require regular minimum payments, according to the statement.

According to CNBC, it's the latest "difficult decision" facing Wells CEO Charlie Scharf, who is being forced to make cutbacks to the banks' business thanks to restrictions imposed by the Federal Reserve years ago as punishment for the bank's criminal scandals like the now-infamous scandal whereby branch managers opened credit lines for customers without permission. a scandal that outraged the public.

"Wells Fargo recently reviewed its product offerings and decided to discontinue offering new Personal and Portfolio line of credit accounts and close all existing accounts," the bank said in the six-page letter. The move would let the bank focus on credit cards and personal loans, it said.

The sudden closures will leave many customers without what may be a critical source of liquidity. What's worse, many will be penalized for the decision, making it more difficult for them to receive credit from a new source. Per CNBC, those whose credit lines are involuntarily closed will still see their FICO scores penalized as if they had elected to close the credit line willingly.

With its latest move, Wells Fargo warned customers that the account closures “may have an impact on your credit score,” according to a Frequently Asked Questions segment of the letter.

Another part of the FAQ asserted that the account closures couldn’t be reviewed or reversed: “We apologize for the inconvenience this Line of Credit closure will cause,” the bank said. “The account closure is final."

Back in 2018, the Fed barred Wells Fargo from expanding its balance sheet until the central bank's regulators decide that the bank has fixed its compliance shortcomings exposed by the fake accounts scandal and other abuses of the consumer.

The asset cap has ultimately cost the bank billions of dollars in lost earnings, based on the balance sheet growth of rivals like JPMorgan. It has also cost the mortgage giant its position as the biggest mortgage lender in the US (and to Quicken Loans, no less).

The last time Wells curtailed consumer credit was back in the summer of 2020 when it halted all new home equity lines of credit. At the time, many were unsure about the remaining purchasing power of the consumer (of course, trillions of dollars in federal stimulus money soon took care of that).

Which is why the timing of this latest decision is so curious. As Treasury yields drop, signaling unease about the trajectory of the global post-pandemic recovery, amid nervousness about a potential Fed rate hike before the end of next year, is the bank simply engaging in some prudent risk-management while using the Fed's balance-sheet order as an excuse? To be sure, the bank didn't directly blame the Fed asset cap, but that would seemingly be the only other justification, since giving out loans is how banks make money.

Wells Fargo SUCKS

It was such a great feeling getting a letter from them saying my mortgage balance was paid in full after I sold my condo that had a mortgage with them.

Something's going on with WF. I wouldn't trust them right now.

On the upside, most of the shut down accounts were fake.

15 things I trust more than Wells Fargo:

1. Mexican tap water
2. A porcupine with a “pet me” sign
3. A Hollywood Producer with my teenage daughter
4. A fart while fighting the flu
5. An elevator ride with Ray Rice
6. Taking a drink offered by Bill Cosby
7. A Bigfoot sighting
8. A war story reported by Brian Williams
9. Gas station sushi
10. Jimmy Carter's economic advice
11. Eating an apple from an orchard at Fukushima reactor #4
12. Hitching a ride from a guy in a goalie mask
13. The ingredients in a hotdog
14. Jerry Sandusky as a Boy Scout leader
15. 0bama's birth certificate

Anyone who still does business with Wells Fargo after the criminal SHIT they pulled is asking for it.

I had the misfortune to have a couple of accounts there years ago.
That bank is a continuing criminal enterprise and I don't understand how no one has gone to jail.

quote:

Originally posted by tatortodd:
15 things I trust more than Wells Fargo:

Number 9 was my first thought and laughed that it made the list.

quote:

Originally posted by 220-9er:
I don't understand how no one has gone to jail.

Too big to jail.

quote:

...those whose credit lines are involuntarily closed will still see their FICO scores penalized as if they had elected to close the credit line willingly.

WF can and should send a list to all relevant credit reporting bureaus that produce effect upon FICO scores.

Anyone that has an account closed under this change, should not have their FICO impacted.

People created these systems and they can be appropriately adjusted.

And and all costs to do so, should be Wells Fargo's to bear out of there profits and shareholder distributions.

Bet there will be another class action against WF.

WF today, is tomorrow's BoA.™

I worked for this outfit for 25 years when it was Norwest. It was a great bank and a great place to work. Along came Wells Fargo and the place went to shit overnight. All of the good employees fled.

I happily, and with a large amount of glee, closed the soul sucking LoC in 2012.

Nothing but a hangover every day.

But I made it out ...

</chris>

"Unexpectedly Shuts All Existing Personal Lines Of Credit" - Nothing new. SOP for decades.

Many moons ago my little podunk local bank, involved in funding a payday loan company, got in FDIC or SEC trouble, and abruptly closed my $10k PLofC. A milestone bummer, as I had talked my way into the unsecured LOC as a lil'shaver of a tradesperson - literally, no assets at all.

In '08 or so BofA suddenly reduced my unsecured $30k line of CC credit to $3k - I told them to cancel the card.

If I was the Bank Of Wood, there's no way I would have made these LOCs available to the likes of me. When Joe Woodman can buy a new car on a CC then skate on the debt but keep the car, that is not a loan I want. Or if WW is keeping that LOC as "emergency appendectomy money", knowing he'd walk away from the loan as financial plan of first resort, that's not a loan I'd want.

Knowing nothing of WF except they might have been Th'Bomb 130 years ago, my advice is 1] Trust no one 2] The fastest way to wealth and security is to not spend; do without; balance wants vs. needs 3] It's their bank, they can do what they want 4] Who gives a flying' leap about FICO? Cypher out #2, live by it, and FICO is reduced to nothing.

Years ago I worked for a company that had WF handle our paychecks. They would send them all over the country except to my house. Call them and they say we are working to serve you better. Our company finally went to direct deposit.

quote:

Originally posted by PASig:
Wells Fargo SUCKS

It was such a great feeling getting a letter from them saying my mortgage balance was paid in full after I sold my condo that had a mortgage with them.

Same thing here. Turned me down for a re-fi, only way they would do it is if I upped the loan amount and took cash out. I went elsewhere. As we were house hunting I wanted to leave all our equity right where it was.

Two weeks before closing I received a call from them asking why I did not apply to them. I told that person that I did, gave them the reason that I did not use them and the name of the person that refused to process the re-fi. From what I was told this matter was going to be referred to a supervisor for further action.

So, they lost that re-fi, a subsequent equity loan and another new mortgage. All for commission greed.

This was in 2003, during the mortgage boom days.

I hope it is a sign they are circling the drain.

They should have been shut down after the stuff they pulled

We have had an open retail account with WF (zero percent for a year, yeah, we will use your money instead of ours).

Anyway, it has been all paid off for quite some time. Yesterday about noon I get an email reminding me that I have available credit to use on that account. 5 hours later, I see the news that WF is closing all of the retail accounts....but you are sending emails the same day to customers about having credit available?

A long time ago I did all my banking at 1st Interstate. Not a huge deal as I was pretty young at the time. Just my personal checking and savings accounts and maybe a car loan. I was very happy with them. Then they were bought out by Wells Fargo. WF immediately started making policy changes, and it took all of about 2 months until they pissed me off to the point that I said Fuck You, closed everything and went elsewhere.

I had nothing more to do with WF until about four years ago when I co-signed a student loan for a young friend going to dental school. She's still in school and the loan payments are suspended for as long as she is. I guess that's fairly standard practice. Anyway, last fall I started getting notices that WF was getting out of the student loan business and that the loan I co-signed for was being transferred to a different institution. That finally happened last month. So now they're shutting down the PLoC business too? Hmmmm....

I’m not happy WF is handling the 0/60 loan for my new AC

quote:

Originally posted by sig2392:
I hope it is a sign they are circling the drain.

They should have been shut down after the stuff they pulled

stocks up 4.5% today.

"Cream and bastards rise."
Cool Hand Luke.

Wells Fargo is good at being tone deaf and stupid.
Opened a checking account because we needed a place to give us access to banking in both Indiana and Florida. Web site lists a branch in Terre Haute and I knew there was one local in Florida. Well the TH branch is really only their investment company. No banking or even access to the account as the systems don't talk to each other. Next nearest is 1.5 hours away.
Next we want to deposit a gift check and then set up a wire transfer to another bank since it's our local in Florida. Because the account is in the name of our trust their "rules" don't allow any wire transfers. The account is totally useless to me. Large chunk of change sitting there earning 1\10% and they can't provide any service. It took an hour in bank to figure out why the wire kept erroring out due to their rules that even their staff didn't know or understand.
Probably need to close the account and move it but where and I know it will be a PITA getting it done.