The Federal Reserve lifted the US$1.95 trillion asset cap imposed on Wells Fargo on 3 June 2025, ending a seven-year restriction that had prevented the San Francisco-headquartered bank from growing its balance sheet beyond the level it held when the enforcement action was first put in place in February 2018. The Fed said it removed the constraint after determining that Wells Fargo had met all the conditions required to demonstrate that it had addressed the governance and risk management failures that gave rise to the cap.
Chief Executive Charlie Scharf described the removal as 'a pivotal milestone' for the bank.
SEVEN YEARS UNDER THE CAP
The asset cap was imposed in February 2018 in response to the fake-accounts scandal that had come to light in 2016, when it emerged that Wells Fargo employees had opened millions of unauthorised customer accounts in order to meet internal sales targets. The episode led to the departure of the bank's chief executive and chairman, and resulted in a series of enforcement actions, consent orders, and financial penalties from multiple federal and state regulators.
The constraint applied to the bank's total consolidated assets.
REMAINING PROVISIONS
Wells Fargo is now able to pursue balance sheet growth in lending, trading, and other activities without the ceiling that has constrained it since 2018.
The Fed said the other provisions of its 2018 enforcement action remain in place until the bank satisfies the requirements for their termination.